A Truly Unexpected Journey
by IfixD
Summary: AU! Rated T just to be safe... When the company of the dwarves left the Blue Mountains, only 12 dwarves went on the journey to Erebor. Kili, seemingly too young, is left behind, but thanks to dwarven stubbornness, he follows them.
1. Prologue

Hello! :)

Alright, now this is my first Hobbit-story, or to be more precise, the prologue to it. I don't know where this might go since I only got a vague idea of the plot, but I hope you'll give it a try.

By the way, it's AU, and you will soon realise that, but I couldn't help it... And I don't want to reveal that much now. :)  
Anyways, I also have to tell you that English is not my native language, so I hope you'll excuse my mistakes. :) Nevertheless, I'm trying my best, and if it isn't that good now, it will only become better if I practise... ;)

If there are questions or suggestions, please tell me though (alright, what a lame way to ask for reviews... but I'd love some encouragement or even criticism - well, I don't love criticism that much, but without it, there's no progress, right?)

Okay, guys, in a nutshell, enjoy reading, tell me what you think and now the story begins:

Prologue

Kili didn't know how many times he had wondered how foolish it was to go on this journey on his own. Seriously, what had possessed him to do this?

Of course, he could name many reasons but if he considered his current situation, none seemed to be worth the trouble he was in at the moment.

First of all, it was not only raining, no, it felt like the rain clouds had decided to flood the whole land – to say that he was soaked through was an understatement! Additionally, it was night – not a problem itself, because the change of day and night was something he was accustomed to. But this night was incredibly dark. Thanks to the rain clouds (again), there was no moon which could have provided at least some light. In fact, it had been raining all day and Kili was so cold that he thought he might never stop shivering. He couldn't even start a fire because there was nothing in sight that could work as shelter for him. And thanks to the cursed rain he couldn't make a fire out in the open. That also meant he couldn't get a nice, warm meal, but that wasn't only the rain's fault. Because of getting lost a few times, he nearly didn't have any supplies left. Speaking about getting lost – he was lost again, somewhere in the wilderness between the Misty Mountains and the Blue Mountains. His intention had been to stop in Bree for at least a night, but he had lost his map earlier and after looking for Bree for a day or two, he had given up and headed for the Misty Mountains (or the direction where he thought the mountains were) – not his smartest idea.

Now, he was cold, hungry, more than wet and completely miserable, but what disturbed him the most was that he was utterly alone. He had never been so alone, never in his whole life.

His brother, Fili, had usually been around, and when he didn't, his mum was near, or his uncle Thorin or some other dwarves. But now, there was nobody! Nobody to talk to, nobody to laugh with, nobody who could help him regain some hope or even his usually good mood, nobody to be just there so that Kili wouldn't be alone anymore.

The young dwarf had no choice than to go on – to walk another mile or two, and maybe he would find something or someone that could actually help him. Briefly, he thought about going back to the Blue Mountains, back home. But he wouldn't. He would never turn back, never! Because turning back meant giving up, meant surrendering. And Kili, nephew to Thorin from the line of Durin, the great king of the dwarves, was far too stubborn to ever give up!

So he marched on, more stumbling than walking down the hill he had been on. He cursed the darkness, the stones that had been placed just for him to trip over them (at least it seemed like this), the rain which made the ground muddy and caused him to slip more than once, the coldness which made him shiver and all the other things that just seemed to have the intention to hinder him and to slow him down.

Of course, Kili's stubbornness couldn't result in something good, and with his luck, it didn't. Tripping over a particularly large rock, he fell forward and would have landed in the mud face-first, but of course he wasn't that lucky again. Instead, his head collided with a tree and for a moment, he could finally see the stars. Before he realised that they only were before his eyes and not in the sky, he felt a sharp pain exploding in his head. The darkness came back and Kili knew no more.

When he came to again, the first thing he noticed was the horrible pain in his head. It felt like a dwarf was in there, digging for mithril with a particularly big and pointy pickaxe. The next thing he noticed that it had stopped raining. Thanking Aule for small mercies, he also realised it was still dark – but wait, he could help at least that.

With what seemed like a great effort to him, Kili opened his eyes and blinked a few times to clear the mist invading his vision. Carefully turning his head, he looked at the landscape around him which was bathed in the gentle light of dawn. The air he inhaled was fresh and clean, but also cold. He shivered a little, the movement coursing through his body was hurting his poor head even more, but he couldn't suppress it.

When the mist seemed to clear from his mind as well, he decided on slowly getting up. He propped himself up on his elbows and immediately felt sick. At the same time, he was also hungry, no, he was starving. And thirsty.

Kili closed his eyes, swallowed hard and hoped the world would stop turning anytime soon.

After a few minutes, it actually did and he opened his eyes again. He blinked in the increasingly intense sunlight and tried to look around. Kili simply had to get an impression of his surroundings, and deep inside he hoped he would see the mountains somewhere on the horizon.

Kili was in a small valley, surrounded by hills. There were even a few trees, but that wasn't what caught his eye right away. There, even hidden in the mists of the morning, far away at the horizon, there were the Misty Mountains. They were majestic, probably covered in snow (he couldn't tell for sure, but he imagined them like that), and let his heart beat faster even at the thought of them. Kili couldn't help but smile when he imagined himself exploring those mountains, probably finding Moria, the big dwarven city from the legends he had been told, with its big halls, many forges and all its treasures. Surely, the Misty Mountains were only some sort of a milestone on his way to his destination, but nevertheless, a part of him had never expected to come this far, so he had been indeed lucky in that respect!

With renewed hope, Kili managed to properly sit up and ignored the increasing nausea. His next step was to completely get up and he used the tree which had caused him that much trouble as a help.

Finally standing on wobbly legs, he looked around for his pack and, more importantly, his bow, the fast movement causing the nausea to increase again. Clutching the tree with both hands, he prevented himself from falling down again and after a few minutes and some really deep breathing, he even trusted his body enough to keep him on his feet.

Kili sighed and his mood darkened again. He couldn't fool himself anymore: He didn't know where he was (well, somewhere not that far away from the Misty Mountains, but that wasn't helpful since that was a rather long mountain range), he didn't have enough supplies left to survive for long, let alone survive the long way over the mountains (provided he found the way), his head hurt like hell (he didn't even have something to ease the pain – he cursed himself for not thinking ahead properly, persons like him simply seemed to attract danger and accidents) and he was so alone. Nobody knew where he was. He hadn't told his mother, he had merely left a letter for her explaining his intentions, thanking her for everything that she had done for him and telling her that he loved her. He hadn't been able to tell Fili, the brother that he trusted with everything, because Fili had left him at home while going on a particularly dangerous but also highly adventurous journey – to say that Kili felt betrayed because of that, not only by his brother but also by his uncle and all the others, was an understatement. He had been hurt by this action as well, but stubborn as he was, he had chosen to follow them.

Fili had only left a letter which was now hidden in Kili's pocket, explaining that they were going on a long journey (he hadn't exactly told him where they were going, but to Kili, it was clear that their destination was Erebor – where else would a band of dwarves, especially his uncle, the last King under the Mountain, go?) and he had almost pleaded with Kili not to follow them. Of course, the younger dwarf didn't think of obeying his brother even once and after packing a few things and waiting a few days – he had known that his mother had been suspicious, but after a week she had let her guard down a bit – he had set out to follow his brother and uncle.

Kili couldn't help but feel a little guilty whenever he thought of his brother. Fili had meant well, he just wanted his younger brother to be safe, but then Kili also had the impression that Fili didn't trust him that much. After all, he had left him alone.

But before he could continue his brooding, Kili got a strange feeling that made the hair in his neck stand. He knew this feeling, he felt watched. He held his breath and listened intensely, not daring to move a muscle and then he heard it.

It was merely a little rustling of the grass, but it came nearer and nearer. That was when Kili, heart beating wild in his chest and not being able to think of something smart to do, reacted on pure instinct. He forgot his head injury, his nausea, even the sword at his side and turned around as fast as he could.

Of course, his vision turned black almost instantly and he felt himself falling, but before he could hit the ground, strong arms were catching him. And then he went unconscious.

Nooow... again, what do you think? :) (I'm just curious, nothing more ;) )


	2. An Unexpected Acquaintance

Okay, guys, thank you all so much for writing those wonderful reviews :). I was really happy to read that you liked it! Seems like the prologue wasn't too bad after all :)

Now, this chapter will probably answer some questions for you. I'm going to write about that later on because I don't want to reveal too much :).

Have fun with the first chapter!

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**An Unexpected Acquaintance**

When he woke up from being unconscious (again, how could one dwarf possibly be so unlucky?), Kili didn't dare to open his eyes. First, he needed to recall what had happened. But thinking too hard proved to be quite difficult since the dwarf in his head seemed to have doubled his efforts to find mithril. Despite that, he had a strange feeling in his stomach, and he couldn't really determine the source – it had to be either hunger or the nausea again. What Kili was sure of was that he didn't like this feeling at all.

Because he still couldn't remember what had happened (Had he hit a tree again?), he decided to just open his eyes. For what seemed like the hundredth time this day, he waited for the black spots to clear from his vision and then stared at a miraculously blue sky (he faintly remembered it had been raining earlier – probably at night?). He lay there for a while, waiting for his eyes to get accustomed to the brightness which only seemed to increase his headache. Breathing deep and even, he was at least able to fight the sick feeling in his stomach. Then, he tried to get up, and was actually nearly sitting when his vision turned dark again and his nausea returned with full force.

He wavered a bit and moaned lowly, not wanting to fall down again. But suddenly, Kili was pressed back by a firm hand on his chest and coudln't find the strength to fight it. Surprisingly, his head didn't hit the ground but something soft. Too focused on not throwing up, he didn't even wonder where that something had come from until he felt better after what seemed like ages.

Again, he felt watched, but this time, he knew that whoever was watching him, had to be at least friendly. Kili slowly opened his eyes and was met with a sight he would have never thought of. He had expected a human, perhaps even a wayward dwarf (and a part of him had hoped that it was his brother, which would have meant his success in finding Thorin and his company, but the other part had feared just that – an angry Thorin was nothing to mess with!), but he had never expected an elf! Pointy ears, carefully braided, blond hair (blonder than Fili's, and longer – but Kili knew his older brother would never admit that), pale skin, a perfectly shaped, ageless face and deep blue eyes with so many emotions hidden in their depth that Kili couldn't pinpoint them.

Letting out the breath he hadn't realized he was holding, he blinked a few times and then stammered:

"W-who are y-you?"

Instantly, he felt like he was making a complete fool out of himself, staring and stuttering and looking absolutely confused. Kili could almost hear his brother in his best lecturing voice, telling him how unpolite his behaviour was.

But the elf seemed to notice his distress and began to laugh. That laughter sounded almost musical didn't increase Kili's headache – he was sure that the roaring laughter of his kin would have definitely caused this.

„I'm sorry", the elf actually giggled (Since when did elves do that? Kili remembered all the stories about them... mostly making the elves appear arrogant, heartless and utterly serious).

„I'm sorry, your look was just.. too funny", the elf said again, now smiling openly and friendly.

Kili was astonished. What kind of an elf was that?!

„Excuse me?", he even tried to frown at the elf. But that only resulted in another burst of laughter.

This time, Kili succeeded in sitting up and leaned his back against a tree – _the _tree. This time, he was grateful for the support. Then, he simply watched the elf heating some water in a small kettle over the fire he had made. Meanwhile, the dwarf tried to get an idea of what to do now. He decided that the elf must be friendly. After all, he had not killed him or bound him to the tree (yet) while he had been unconscious. But then, could he trust him? His uncle Thorin had always warned him of the elves, especially referring to their king Thranduil who had profited from the dwarves' wealth, but had just watched the destruction and murder the dragon had brought without helping them. Additionally, Thorin and most of the other dwarves would resent him if he actually befriended an elf! Still, Kili decided to at least give the elf a chance. First, he had no other choice, he desperately needed help to survive in the wilderness and second, he was curious what the elf really was like.

So he watched the elf throwing a few dry leaves in the small kettle and stirring the brew. Immediately, Kili noticed a strong yet refreshing smell. The elf waited a little, occasionally stirring whatever he was cooking, and then, satisfied, soaked a cloth in the brew. Then, he went over where Kili was sitting and started to clean his head.

Puzzled, the young dwarf felt a sting where the cloth touched his head, which only increased his headache, but after a short while, it began to dull. When the elf was finished, Kili noticed that the cloth had become dirty and bloody. It dawned on him that he had actually sustained a head injury.

„Thank you", he mumbled, but the elf heard him anyway.

„You're most welcome, young dwarf", he answered and threw the cloth back in the kettle.

Then, he went over to his pack and got a little package out. It was wrapped in leaves. The elf unwrapped it and handed Kili something that looked like bread. It had a color that reminded him of honey, but still, it seemed like a small portion. Kili was unsure whether that little bit would satisfy his now loudly rumbling stomach, but it was better than nothing and so he just took a bite. It tasted wonderful, almost as delicious as his mother's cookies, and before Kili noticed it, the bread-thing was gone.

„Thanks again, but what was that?", he asked and bit his tongue so that an addition like „Can I have some more?" didn't get out before he could stop it.

„Shouldn't you ask that before you eat it?", the elf laughed and even his eyes now shone with mirth.

Kili couldn't really suppress his own smirk. The elf was funny!

Without a word, the dwarf received another of those bread-things and it was also gone in the blink of an eye.

„Seems like those things are disappearing", he said to break the silence and was a little bit satisfied when the elf laughed again – he just hoped Thorin would never find out that it actually made him happy to make an elf laugh!

„Indeed, indeed", the elf nodded and sat down in front of Kili.

„So, Master Dwarf, after easing your trouble, I would like to get to know at least your name", he then said in a serious voice, but the sparkle in his eyes betrayed him.

„So, Master Elf, if I recall it correctly, I asked the same thing of you first", Kili said with the same mock-seriousness.

„That might be true, but since I helped you out, you might consider yourself in my debt and to pay me back, I'd like to know your name before you know mine", the elf countered.

Kili raised an eyebrow, then sighed dramatically.

„Kili."

„And?", the elf simply said.

„And what?", Kili retorted.

„Don't you dwarves like to point out from which lineage you are, who your popular relatives or forefathers are and where you are from? At least that's what all the dwarves did that I've met before."

Kili bit the inside of his jaw. The elf was actually right, all dwarves were proud of their lineage, of their kin, and didn't hesitate to rub it in each other's face. But when Kili revealed his, he also needed to say that he was Thorin's nephew, the youngest in the line of Durin. And he didn't trust the elf that much to tell him this just now. Also, he wished Fili would be there. Fili always knew what to do in situations like that, he could think of an answer without revealing too much. That was the moment Kili felt so horribly alone again; he simply wasn't used to being without his brother!

The elf seemed to sense his discomfort and had obviously decided to do something against it.

„By the way, my name is Legolas and I'm from Greenwood", he said and smiled a little.

Kili felt grateful, the elf seemed to mean well, but still, he couldn't fully trust him, could he?He didn't even know the other! The elf had helped him and he was thankful for that, but still, he was an elf! Kili couldn't simply forget all the things he had been told about this people!

„Isn't it called Mirkwood?", he asked then, noticing that he had taken some time to answer to the elf's earlier revelation.

A shadow seemed to settle itself on the other's face.

„That's true, people tend to call it like that. But my people have been there before it became so dark and dangerous. We still remember the Greenwood in its lighter days, and we wish for it to become light and friendly again."

„Oh", Kili simply said, not knowing what to say apart from that.

„I'm from the Blue Mountains", he decided it was save to give that detail to the elf.

„Then it's nice to meet you, Kili from the Blue Mountains", the other said then, smiling again.

„It's also nice to meet you, Legolas from Mirkwood. But may I ask you another question?", Kili asked. Admittedly, he was curious now. He knew that his uncle despised the elves from Mirkwood since their king had refused to aid the dwarves of Erebor when the dragon had come. But that particular elf seemed kind and friendly to him, even if he didn't trust him fully and that was why Kili had decided to get to know him a little better. It couldn't hurt, could it?

„You just did that, but feel free to ask another one", the elf, no, Legolas, said.

„Why are you here, so far from Mirkwood? And where are we exactly? And how did you find me? And why did you help me?"

Legolas made a funny face as if he was confused, but then he laughed again.

„That was more than one question! But if you answer my questions afterwards, I'll be happy to answer yours now."

„Okay", Kili said, hoping the elf's questions wouldn't be too bad, but still, the whole thing seemed fair to him.

„Promise?"

„Promise" the dwarf said and was instantly reminded of himself and his brother who had asked each other the same question numerous times.

„Right now, we are somewhere northeast of the Weather Hills, probably a day's journey away from the Last Bridge and only a few days away from Imladris or Rivendell as you might call it", Legolas explained.

„Isn't that an elven city?", Kili asked, sure that he had heard that name at a certain point.

„Indeed, it's where Lord Elrond and his people live, some call it the Last Homely House."

„And why are you here again?"

„One at a time, Master Dwarf. I was actually heading west when I came across a rather strange fellowship heading for the Trollshaws. That is, in my opinion, quite unwise since many trolls are still living there, so I followed them a little. When they got near the Trollshaws, I left them again, not wanting to get into any trouble. They didn't notice me, by the way, and I didn't mind at all because I knew at least two of them and I wasn't so keen to meet them. Anyway, I resumed my way westwards when I actually came across your trace and followed it until I saw you, blacked out near a tree", Legolas went on.

„What kind of fellowship was that?", Kili asked before he could stop himself. It couldn't be Throin and company, could it?

Legolas raised an eyebrow as if he wanted to ask a silent question, then answered:

„There were 12 dwarves, one halfling and one wizard."

Kili knew that the elf was going to ask whether he knew them, but still he admired him (though he would never admit that) for his patience. Anyway, that answer made him feel uneasy. Of course, he was glad that his brother and uncle and all the others seemed to be well, but what would his brother say when he found out that he had followed them? And how would Thorin react? Apart from that, Kili highly suspected the wizard to be Gandalf, but who was that halfling? And why did they allow a halfling of all people to accompany them on their journey when he, Kili, clearly wasn't allowed to come?

Legolas seemed to notice his unease again and continued with answering his questions:

„As for why I helped you, I'm actually not quite sure. I mean, you're right, why would I help a dwarf of all people? Believe me, I haven't forgotten that our races don't seem to get along and that there are probably more prejudices than I can count. But then, that doesn't have to mean that all dwarves are stone-hearted, arrogant and more stubborn than anything, right? My mother once taught me that I shouldn't judge people for what they appear to be, but for what they really are, and that everyone deserves a chance. Of course, she got quite cross with me when I actually tried to befriend a bear, but that's another story..." Legolas trailed off and smiled a bit sheepishly.

Kili snorted, but it sounded a lot like the laughter he tried to suppress. Apart from that, the truth behind those words didn't go unnoticed. That elf was right, everyone deserved a chance, and with that, Kili started to trust the elf. It was no deep trust like the one he shared with his family (although they didn't seem to trust him that much in return since they left him behind), but it was a start nevertheless.

„Now, it's my turn, Master Dwarf", Legolas smiled a bit satisfied.

„Just... could you stop calling me 'Master Dwarf'? I feel really old when you do that", Kili asked, trying his best to be as friendly as the elf was to him. It seemed so easy for the other!

„Of course, I'd be delighted to do so", the elf said seriously, but his sparkling eyes betrayed him.

„So, what is a young dwarf like you doing here, lost in the wilderness of Eriador, while a larger party of his kin is only a day's journey away? Surely, it would be easier to travel with them?"

Kili had feared that question, but now he decided to be completely honest.

„Well, it seems like they left me behind and I followed them", he said with a dark tone in his voice that spoke of how hurt he was by that action.

„Oh, I know that feeling. Believe me, every time my father left me behind when he went traveling, I followed him. After getting myself in trouble in the process for a few times, he realised it actually was better and healthier for all of us to bring me along", Legolas said and his eyes which always seemed to express his feelings, shone with sympathy.

„Seems like it resulted in trouble for me as well", Kili mumbled, angry at himself.

„No worries, you should think of it as a lucky incident, since you met me and all", Legolas laughed and for the first time, Kili gave in and joined him.

„And where are you heading?" Legolas asked after while.

„I'm not sure, to be honest."

„And where are the other dwarves heading?"

„They didn't tell me", that wasn't even a lie. Kili felt like he was interrogated and he didn't like it at all.

„And why are you following them? There's surely more to it than just being left behind."

„One of them is my brother", again, not a lie, but also not the full truth.

„I see", Legolas replied, looking thoughtful for a second, „and this is the only reason?"

Kili didn't really know what to say. If he told him of his suspicions, it would be betrayal of his fellow dwarves, of his kin!

Again, he was grateful for the elf's intuition, when he said:

„Well, it seems quite clear to me where they are heading. And I believe, you have your own suspicions."

When Kili didn't say a word, he nodded and continued:

„I understand and I would probably do the same. If you ask me, they are heading for the Lonely Mountain. Quite a folly thing to do, I must say, with the dragon in there and all, but then, one of them was Thorin Oakenshield, the former king's grandson, so that conclusion seems rather logical to me. Apart from that, one of them was Mithrandir, and with a wizard, one will never know."

Kili looked at the elf, dumbfounded. Legolas knew his uncle?! Also, it was really surprising how the elf seemed to come to the same conclusion as he had.

„Of course, I promise not to tell anyone of their quest", Legolas smiled at him knowingly.

Kili said nothing again, and he didn't really have an idea of what to do. There he sat, accompanied by an elf who had just deduced his uncle's intentions, right in the middle of nowhere and, in a manner of speaking, at the mercy of said elf that also seemed to know what he was thinking! What was he to do, for Aule's sake?

„Don't worry, we'll follow them and see what they're up to, and then we decide how to proceed. Does this sound like a plan?", Legolas said, smiling at him again.

That left Kili even more at a loss. The elf was so damn friendly that he couldn't really despise him as he should, and when he remembered his words, he really had no right to do that. So why shouldn't he accept the offer? Then, he had an idea how to test the elf another time, and he promised himself that when he was not satisfied with the result, he would find a way to get away from that elf as soon as possible.

„I don't mean to be rude, but why are you offering that to me? And what are you doing here anyway, so far from Mirkwood?"

„You mean: Why should you trust me?", Legolas didn't look or sound offended, but his eyes had narrowed a little bit.

Kili bit his lip.

„Well, that's a wise question to ask. I clearly gave you no reason to trust me, I mean, yes, I helped you with your wound, gave you something to eat that you wouldn't starve and I haven't killed you so far even if some of my friends might have advised me to, but that's clearly no reason to trust someone after all", the elf replied sarcastically and Kili felt like a small boy who was scolded for breaking something.

„Okay, I'm a stranger to you and everything, but to be honest, I'm quite happy to have met you. I was on my way to the sea, to the Grey Havens, from where my people depart to the Undying Lands. I haven't told anyone of that so far, so please, please never tell anyone as well because at least my father would be ready to lock me in the dungeons until the end of the world if he knew I wanted to sail without telling him. But then, as I told you, I found out about the other dwarves and I have found you, and that whole Reclaiming-Erebor-thing sounds like fun, or at least like a big adventure. I haven't been on something like that for a while now and that is why I'd be happy to accompany you", after revealing all that, Legolas sighed as if a big burden had been lifted from his shoulders.

Kili looked at him and could see the honesty in his eyes. Briefly, he wondered why the elf had wanted to sail away from Middle-Earth (he had heard of the elves doing that, but had never understood why). But then, he was again dumbfounded by that much honesty.

That was when Kili knew that he could fully trust that elf – on one side, it seemed just fair since the elf seemed to trust him that much as well, and on the other side, deep inside himself, he knew it was the right thing to do.

„So be it, then. Let's go", and that was when Kili actually smiled. Now, he wasn't alone anymore and he was happy with that. And he didn't care what Thorin might say about it all!

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Alright, so what do you think about that chapter? I'd be happy to read what's going through your mind now... To be honest, after reading it again, I thought it was rather long, but I didn't want to shorten it. Furthermore, I promise that the next chapter will have some more action in it.

Anyways, it seemed like a good idea to me to let Legolas and Kili meet that early. Of course, Legolas seems quite playful and funny here, but that's just adding to the fun in my opinion. We'll see what will become of them. :) Hopefully, they'll be nice to each other and maybe form a strong friendship... which would be quite sad if we think of how the story will end for at least one of them... I'll see what I can do. :)


	3. Of Elfs and Dwarves and Trees and Wargs

Ok, first of all, I'd like to thank all of you who have taken the time to review! It always gives me the reason to write more, so keep on reviewing and I'll keep on writing. Deal? :)

Today, I had to travel back to the town where I go to university, and it was a long journey. But I made good use of my freetime and this is the product of it... I hope you'll enjoy it. A little more action this time, I guess. :)

Anyways, something really important I need to say: This won't be slash! Just friendship and family and so on, and if someone likes another person, it's just that. I forgot to mention that earlier, and I'm sorry about that.

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**Of Elfs and Dwarves and Trees and Wargs**

Over the last few days, Kili and Legolas had made a lot of progress, and that was not only referring to their journey, but also to their friendship.

They had crossed a river (Kili couldn't remember its name... it was an elven one and even if Legolas had taught his some basics such as „Thank you" and „Hello", he wasn't that good at remembering words in that language – let alone pronounce them correctly), using a bridge called „The Last Bridge", a name which seemed rather pessimistic in Kili's opinion. After that, they had left the road leading to Rivendell and Legolas had led him on paths which only seemed to be known to the elf. Sometimes, Kili could get a glimpse of a woodland int the north, and he had been told that that was indeed a part of the Trollshaws. Thinking of the stories he had gladly listened to when he was a dwarfling, Kili wasn't so keen on meeting one of those ugly, brutal creatures – but then, the stories about elves weren't true, so probably the ones about trolls weren't as well. That made him actually curious, but still Kili hesitated to ask Legolas to go over to that woodland to see a troll. After all, he didn't want to make a complete fool out of himself (to be honest, it was again the Fili-voice in his head telling him just that).

To speak of their relationship, it seemed to Kili that they were actually becoming friends. He wouldn't lie to himself about that, the elf was a good guy. A strange good guy, but nevertheless, good. Also, it made Kili proud in his own eyes, that he had accomplished something that neither his brother nor his uncle had: He had befriended an elf! Again, the elf acted strange from time to time, for example, sometimes, he would stand next to a tree, one hand resting at the trunk, with closed eyes and didn't move for a few minutes. To Kili, it seemed like he was communicating with the tree, which of course couldn't be possible, but then, wood-elves were strange creatures... . Another strange thing was that bread Legolas was carrying with him. Kili had forgotten its name, but found it quite nutritious. One piece of that bread was enough for one day, but still, Kili longed for something like meat, for a real meal. But Legolas could survive even with only half a slice of that bread for the day and the elf was much more agile than the dwarf was.

Then, there were of course the sharp senses of the elf. Kili had always thought that he himself had good eyes and ears. He had actually been proud of being able to hear and see things other dwarves didn't, but that was simply nothing in comparison with the elf's hearing and eye-sight. Also, Legolas seemed to anticipate things like he simply knew that they would happen. Kili was sure that this was probably non-sense, since Legolas was no wizard or something, but he couldn't really stop thinking of that either.

At that moment, the dwarf again looked north and wondered whether Thorin, his brother and the others were somewhere there in the great plains before him while Legolas was standing next to the tree and doing whatever he was doing with it. Kili loved looking at the hilly landscape like that, it never ceased to amaze him, although the most amazing thing were the mountains which seemed to come nearer every day.

Kili was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't notice Legolas approaching him with a deep frown on his face. The frown was quickly replaced by a grin when the elf noticed his chance and moved stealthily around so that he was facing Kili's back. Suddenly, he crept the young dwarf by the shoulders from behind. Of course, Kili had never expected something like this and he jumped about a mile high, completely startled.

Legolas started to laugh while the dwarf was clutching at his chest, trying to draw slow and even breaths.

„That might have cost me at least 20 minutes of my life-time!", he exclaimed which only resulted in making Legolas laugh more.

„You should have seen your face, it's been a while since I've seen something like this before!"

Kili grumbled something about immature elves and their sneakiness, but had to hide a smile. After all, he was known for pranks like this and he even might deserve that one.

When Legolas had calmed down, he said, this time in a serious voice:

„There are a few orcs and wargs not far from here. It seems like they are looking for something."

„Or someone", Kili replied darkly, instantly worried. Even if they weren't looking for the two of them, they would surely look for his uncle and his company. Despite his anger, he didn't want something bad to happen to them.

„True, I guess, they are looking for this band of dwarves", Legolas said, raising an eyebrow as if he already knew what Kili would say next.

„We need to help them", he said with determination.

„Well, who am I to disagree with such a head-strong dwarf?", the elf said, trying to lighten the mood.

„Who said I was going to take you with me?", Kili countered.

„Yes, of course, I forgot about your extra-ordinary skills in tracking and finding the way", Legolas said, raising his eyebrow even higher.

„Excuse me, there must be something in my ear, I couldn't understand you", Kili shouted suddenly, clapping at his ears. However, he couldn't stop the smirk appearing on his face.

Legolas looked puzzled for a moment, then laughed.

„Now that's something new, I have to keep that in mind", he smiled.

„Anyway, how do you know about the orcs?", Kili asked then, curious. The elf couldn't have talked to the tree now, could he?

„The tree told me", Legolas said in a matter-of-fact-voice, his mouth slightly twitching.

„The tree?!"

„Do I need to repeat myself?", Legolas said in mock-annoyance.

„But how...?", Kili said, completely confused.

„Didn't one of your dwarven-friends tell you about the silly wood-elves who are actually talking to trees?"

„Well, yes, but I thought that those were just stories!"

„They aren't, at least not totally. Of course we can't actually talk to the trees in the same way I can talk to you, we merely sense their distress or happiness. And it's clearly understandable that they are not fond of things like orcs. I just sensed this and then, I was intently listening and heard the faint roars of wargs and the shouts of their riders", Legolas explained.

It took Kili some of his will-power to not just stare at the elf in awe. That was just... amazing!

„That's really, uhm, helpful, I guess", he said then, not really knowing what to tell the elf.

„Indeed. But now, I suggest we go and see whether we can help them", Legolas said and his eyes held a strange sparkle in their depths.

„Agreed!", Kili nodded, grabbing his bow just in case he might have to use it, and instantly felt adrenaline rush through his veins. With the elf at his side who actually seemed to know and be able to do everything, that could even be fun!

Said and done, the pair hurried through the plain. Soon, Kili discovered that it wasn't that much fun to go chasing orcs with a never-tiring elf. After what seemed like hours to him, he was quite exhausted, nearly gasping for air because Legolas had chosen to get to the orcs and their prey as fast as possible.

After Kili thought he might just faint of exhaustion, Legolas suddenly stopped on top of a hill. Of course, the dwarf was not that fast to react and bumped into the elf, nearly causing both of them to tumble down the hillside. Instead of saying anything, Legolas grabbed Kili by the arm and pulled him behind a tree.

„What...?", the dwarf gasped, not knowing what was happening to him as he crouched behind the tree next to Legolas.

„Quiet, just look there", the elf said in a low voice and pointed to something.

When Kili looked at it, he stopped believing his own eyes for a second. There was a rather large group of warg-riders who were chasing a strange figure on something that looked like a sleigh that was pulled (?) by rabbits. The dwarf closed his eyes, shook his head and opened them again, but the sleigh was still there!

„In Aule's name, what's that?", he whispered.

„Have you ever heard of Radagast the Brown?", Legolas asked, smiling at Kili's confusion.

When the dwarf shook his head, he continued:

„He's a wizard, like Mithrandir, or Gandalf, but not as powerful. Still, he's a good guy. He lives in Greenwood, by the way, that's why I know him."

Kili nodded, but then spotted something to the left.

„Look, there!", he nearly shouted in surprise, forgetting to be careful about raising his voice. But in that moment, he didn't mind at all. There, near a few boulders, there clearly was a group of people which Kili quickly identified as his uncle, brother and company. With horror, he noticed that the majority of the warg-riders left their original group and headed for the dwarves instead.

Without saying a word and without even thinking, Kili was on his feet and running down the hill, forgetting all caution. It was more luck than anything that neither the wargs nor their riders noticed him so far. They were only focused on their prey, a group of dwarves, a hobbit and a wizard, which were of course defending themselves, but still, they would stand no chance.

Kili got behind another boulder and shot an arrow at the nearest warg, aiming for its neck and hitting it there. The rider, not knowing what had befallen him, went down as well and never got up again. When Kili aimed for the next one, he saw Legolas in the corner of his eye, standing behind another tree and firing arrows with much precision. The elf's movements were swift and sure as if he had never done anything else and Kili admired that great skill. He himself was considered one of the best archers among his people, but he would never be that good!

When he fired another few arrows, each hitting a warg or its rider, he observed the group of dwarves disappearing behind the boulders, shouting for the others who were still fighting to follow them. For a moment, Kili spotted Fili, killing a warg with great skill and would have nearly shouted for his brother, but he knew better. The younger was angry at his brother, but he knew that Fili would be angry at him as well for disobeying him. What was more, Kili wasn't at all prepared to face the „wrath of Thorin" which would surely come to him when his uncle noticed that he had followed them without permission.

Fili disappeared behind the boulders as well, but Kili spotted a warg following him. And that was when he forgot everything what he had ever been told about how the archer stayed hidden as long as he could. Kili ran forward, trying to get a better sight of the warg and when he did, he fired an arrow while still running. When the arrow hit home and the now dead warg dropped to the ground, the young dwarf was truly amazed by his skill. Unfortunately, this amazement soon turned into horror.

Meanwhile, the wargs and their orc-riders had been clearly confused when member after member of their party was shot and they couldn't find the source. The remaining ones looked out for the shooter but still weren't able to locate him. Finally, when there were only two riders and one single warg left, the shooter seemed to leap out of his hiding-place, clearly focused on something else. That was when the single warg took its chance.

It caught the dwarf on his shoulder, biting through flesh and muscle. His prey, however, was so surprised by that action and the sudden, horrible pain that he only managed to get out a small yelp before the beast threw his through the air. He landed a few feet away, and stayed there, paralyzed by shock and pain.

Legolas, only a little surprised by the dwarf's action – after all, people of all raced seemed to react in the same way when it came to their own kin – and was therefore even a little bit annoyed, killed the warg and the remaining riders with ease and then quickly ran to his fallen friend. Actually, he got a strange feeling in his stomach when he saw that Kili still hadn't moved. He didn't care for the dwarf that much now, did he?

Obviously, he did, but he was even more relieved to find the young one breathing and conscious, but with nearly glazed eyes and a sheen of sweat appearing on his forehead. Legolas hit him slightly on one cheek and was satisfied to see Kili focussing on him almost immediately. Then, he quickly checked the wound, ignoring the dwarf's pained gasping and groaning and found it not too badly injured. It was nothing that couldn't be repared. Apart from the shoulder wound, the dwarf had only sustained a few bruises from his involuntary flight, but what worried Legolas was the amount of blood that the other was losing.

„H-how bad is it?", Kili gasped, worried because the elf said nothing.

„Nothing Lord Elrond or his healers can't fix", Legolas answered and gave him a reassuring, but also forced smile.

„Elrond?", Kili asked, trying to get his mind working in order to forget about the pain.

„Yes, his house is not that far from here. I even know a short-cut which is more of a secret entrance Arwen and I once discovered. Although it doesn't seem to be that secret because Mithrandir just lead your dwarven-friends through it", Legolas explained, tearing a large strip of cloth away from Kili's cloak (Not his own, his father would be infuriated enough that his son's new companion was a dwarf and Legolas didn't want to make it worse by sacrificing one of his better traveling cloaks for a bandage for said dwarf) and using it as a bandage.

Kili moaned in pain, trying his best to suppress the scream he so badly wanted to let out. Still, his pride forbade it.

„But we can't meet them", and then grounded out, sounding a bit desperate.

„Why not?", Legolas asked, giving him a brief glance.

„Because... my brother... my uncle...", Kili stammered.

„Your uncle? You haven't mentioned him before", the eyebrow shot up again.

„I... never mind. If they see me, they won't be happy since I f-followed them without permission", the pain was now very evident in Kili's voice and Legolas looked at him with something that seemed like sympathy.

„I'll see to it. I know a way to help you without them or even Elrond himself noticing us. Trust me", Legolas said almost soothingly (and started to question himself – What was he doing? He only knew the dwarf for a short time and already started to care for him!)

Kili looked almost thoughtful for a second or two, then said:

„I trust you. Help me up?"

Without another word, but nevertheless even a bit grateful for that trust (Seriously, what was wrong with him? He needed to talk to Arwen about that!), Legolas helped the poor Kili up who even managed to hold back his pained groan now and then stood, a little swaying from side to side. Nevertheless, he stood.

Then, the two went over to the boulders where the other dwarves had disappeared. They slid down a little slope under the boulders (Legolas was a lot more graceful as Kili, as always, but this time, the dwarf didn't mind at all. He hurt, damn it!) and then followed a narrow way between large rocks.

Legolas head to steady Kili occasionally when the dwarf was swaying a little too much and noticed that they make-shift bandage was already soaked through. He also noticed the growing palour of the dwarf and knew that they had to hurry up a little more. Unfortunately, the dwarf became weaker by the minute, his movements grew more and more unsure and he had started to tremble a bit. Still, he marched on and that was the first time Legolas actually admired the stubbornness of the dwarves (though he would never admit that!).

Then, the dwarf stopped, swayed a little more from one side to the other, looked up a him with bleary eyes, mumbled something that sounded a lot like „Sorry" and then let his eyes roll up in his head. Before he could fall to the ground, Legolas had actually caught him, grumbled to himself something about Arwen who was going to have a good laugh about that and started to hurry to Rivendell.

This time, he made much better progress and only briefly glanced down on the pale dwarf in his arms, noticing that he was still breathing (Legolas didn't want to think of what would happen if his companion stopped doing that!) although he was as white as a sheet. Legolas didn't stop when he stepped out of the passageway and was greeted by a spectacular view of Imladris like he normally would. Instead, he went on and soon found himself near some sort a platform.

There, Lord Elrond himself, dressed in armour – Legolas wondered what he had been doing, greeted his unusual guests personally. Still, the dwarves seemed to distrust him and his people since there was a lot of shouting. Legolas smiled to himself – some things would never change! Being careful to not attract any attention, he went to the right where he was instantly hidden behind some bushes. Then he followed another secret path leading straight to the chambers of the Lady Arwen, wondering what she would say about his latest adventure.

* * *

So... how did you like it? What do you think about Legolas and Arwen (I'm not sure about their relationship though... since it's AU, I can do whatever I want :D)? And would you like Thorin and Co. to find out that Kili actually followed them? I'm open for suggestions, since I haven't decided yet... :)


	4. Many Meetings

Good evening to you all!

As you can see, I have managed to write another chapter for that story. It took me some time because I'm back to university now, and it will probably take me another week to update again, but for now, this chapter is done and I hope you all will enjoy it.

I have managed to change to language of my writing in my writing program, therefore the "s are now how they should be. :)

Now, on with the story, it's time for a few revelations! Hope you'll enjoy it!

* * *

**Many Meetings**

The first Kili noticed when he came to again, was a horrible headache. The dwarf in his head seemed to back again, digging deeper and faster than ever. The next thing he noticed was a horrible thirst. His mouth seemed as dry as sand and he also felt sick. He just lay there, not daring to open his eyes, trying to swallow against the sickness, but failing since his mouth was so dry. Kili just felt completely and utterly miserable and for a second, he just wanted to die so that he would feel no hurt anymore. Then, he noticed a dull throbbing in his left shoulder, but it was not as horrible as his headache, even if it became stronger and stronger.

"So, you just let him accompany you?", there suddenly was a voice, a beautiful voice not so far away from him. Although it sounded wonderful, it was unknown to Kili and he held his breath, waiting and trying to assess the situation – what proved to be quite difficult with that horrible headache and the growing sickness.

"It appears so, yes", there was another voice and there was sense of recognition. Kili knew that person although he couldn't remember who it was.

"You have changed, mellon-nin", the first voice again. It was higher, more female than the second one.

"Probably. But still I don't regret it", the second, probably male voice, answered with a bit of determination. Who in Durin's name was that?

"Then you have done the right thing", the female said and Kili could hear her smiling – since when could he hear people smiling? He must have become somewhat elvish! Of course, that was the fault of that elf, Legolas, it was all because of him! Legolas! That was the male's name! Kili felt relief, at least he wasn't all alone among strangers again.

"I guess my father would disagree to that", Legolas – again, thank Aule he was there – countered.

More laughter from the female, and it was such a beautiful sound!

"The dispute between the elves and the dwarves is widely known, mellon-nin. That is why I am proud of your actions."

"You are proud of me?", Legolas asked and Kili could hear the confusion in his voice. But he didn't care at that moment, the only thing on his mind was the growing sickness and the urge to hold down whatever food was in his stomach.

"Of course! Think about it! You of all people, the high and mighty prince of Mirkwood and son to the King Thranduil, have befriended a young dwarf! Surely that could work as an example for your people!", the female exclaimed and Kili could hear a deep sigh from Legolas.

But he never got to know the elf's answer because he fought a losing battle against his own stomach. Kili's eyes shot open, and the bleary pictures with which he was greeted only increased the sick feeling (even if he had never thought that possible). He sat up as fast as he could and looked utterly helpless.

Legolas might have noticed his pale face turning green because he was at his side in an instant, holding something, probably a small bucket, in place when Kili started throwing up what little food was left in his stomach. In fact, there was not much left, so he just retched for a while and wished to die for the second time that day. His head hurt as well as his left shoulder, the world seemed to turn around him and the throwing up just made it all worse!

When it finally stopped, Kili was left trembling from exhaustion and cold (he could swear that it hadn't been cold before!). At the same time, he felt hot and that was why he was more than grateful for gentle hands which guided him to lay down. He closed his eyes and the last thing he noticed before he fell asleep was a soft voice that said:

"Peace, my friend, try to sleep and you will feel better afterwards."

When Kili woke up again, he had to admit he felt slightly better. The sickness was as good as gone, but the headache was still there as well as his throbbing shoulder. But this time, he felt more confident to open his eyes right after waking up.

It took some time for the fog in front of his eyes to clear, but when it finally did, he got the chance to look around. He was in a rather large room with open windows at one side through which a soft breeze came in and gently blew the long, white curtains. The walls of the rooms were full of drawings and small carvings, looking absolutely beautiful and harmonic. He himself lay in a large bed, slightly propped up by soft pillows and the only thing he could think of for a moment was how long it had been since he had actually slept in a real bed.

Then, Kili noticed to figures, elves, standing near one of the windows and gazing outside. One of them was Legolas. He wore a silver tunic and his blonde hair shone in the light of the moon – that was the first time Kili noticed that it was actually night. Beside Legolas stood the female elf, tall and slender, with long, dark hair, wearing a dark-blue dress and also gazing outside. Kili, being just the typical dwarf, instantly noticed the beautifully crafted necklace she was wearing. Both elves were silently smiling to themselves about something he didn't know.

Legolas was the first to notice that he was awake.

"Well, good evening, Master Dwarf, I trust you slept well?", he said, smiling.

"Good evening to you, too, Master Elf and thanks, I truly slept well", Kili answered and was surprised how raspy his voice sounded.

The other elf noticed it as well and swiftly went to his bedside to hand him a glass of water. Kili gratefully accepted it, realizing again how thirsty he was and drank everything.

"Thank you", he said and tried a smile at the beautiful elf.

"You're most welcome. It seems like you're feeling better now, young dwarf", she said and now that she was so near it took all of Kili's willpower not to stare at her. She was just so beautiful and everything on her seemed so perfect!

Legolas noticed the dwarf's insecurity (Honestly, the elf could read him like an open book!) and carefully sat down on the bed.

"This is the Lady Arwen, Lord Elrond's daughter. She has tended to your wounds and is our most gracious host", he said in a tone that seemed quite official.

But what surprised Kili was that the Lady Arwen slightly punched Legolas in the arm.

"How many times do I have to tell you that you shouldn't call me 'Lady'?", she almost growled.

"I beg your pardon, my lady", Legolas answered with a smirk and was punched again, this time harder.

"To you, I'm just Arwen, understood, Master Dwarf?", she said, looking mock-sharply at Kili.

"Thank you. My name is Kili and I am very happy to meet you", the dwarf said, remembering his manners.

Arwen smiled at him and it was the most beautiful smile he had ever seen. To fight the urge of staring at her again, Kili faced Legolas.

"How have I come here?"

"After you passed out in the secret passageway", Arwen slightly snorted at that, "I carried you to Imladris and since then you are here under the care of Arwen."

"Thank you", Kili said again to them both. He felt a bit embarrassed because Legolas had had to actually carry him and he only hoped the others couldn't tell of his embarrassment.

"No need to thank me, young Kili, it's the least I could do", Arwen said and smiled again.

Kili smiled back, still quite unsure of how to behave in the company of such a lady, but then, something came to his mind that instantly filled him with worry and fear.

The dwarf grabbed Legolas' arm.

"What happened to them? What happened to my uncle and my brother and their companions? Did they... Did they survive?", he asked in a rush, swallowing hard.

"No worries, young friend, they are all here in Imladris. We were just watching them, they do not seem to be accustomed to the food that is served in Elrond's house", Legolas answered and chuckled slightly. He was immediately joined by Arwen.

"So, they are alright?", Kili asked, needing a last bit of reassurance.

"As alright and healthy as they could be", Arwen said.

"Do you wish to see them?", Legolas asked, watching him closely.

"Yes! I suppose...", he trailed off. Kili wasn't sure whether he wanted to see them or not. On the one hand, he would get the chance to give them all a piece of his mind about leaving him behind, but on the other hand, especially Thorin would be very angry when he discovered that his nephew had disobeyed him.

"You still need some time to rest, young Kili. I would say you sleep for another night and let your injuries heal a little more before you go and greet them in the morning. We don't want to startle them with your unhealthy looks, do we?", Arwen said.

Kili nodded and the said:

"How bad are they? My wounds, I mean."

"It took you some time to think of that", Legolas observed.

"I was focused on more important things", Kili told him.

"And that makes you a very good person, to be more concerned for others than for yourself. Anyway, your wounds are not that bad. Your shoulder will be healed in a few days if you don't move it too much. Concerning your headache, sickness and nausea, that's only from the blood-loss. It will probably pass after a good night's sleep, so you shouldn't worry to much. After all, you seem to have a guardian angel", Arwen said, shooting a glance at Legolas who acted as if he wasn't knowing what she was referring to. She smiled at that and winked at Kili.

"So, I'll be able to use my bow again?", he asked. His bow was his most loved weapon and he would be devastated if he couldn't use it anymore.

"Of course, but you'll need to practice a bit after that injury to your shoulder. I am sure that Legolas and my brothers will be happy to assist you at that", Arwen reassured him.

Kili looked at Legolas for confirmation.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure you'll beat them", the elf laughed and Kili had no other choice than to join him.

"We'll see, we'll see", said a voice from the balcony which almost made the dwarf jump.

Legolas looked a bit surprised for a moment, but then a smirk appeared at his face. On the contrary, Arwen furrowed her brow and than said sternly:

"Elladan! Elrohir! How often did I tell you not to come into my room without permission?!"

"Especially when she has company!", Legolas added and his smirk grew even wider.

Arwen punched him on the arm again.

"We are not in your room, sweet sister, we are merely on your balcony", one of the elves answered.

"And I would have never expected of you, Thranduilion, to sneak into our sister's room at night!", said a similar voice.

Kili was confused. There were two voices, and yet they seemed to come from the same person because the were so alike.

"Unlike you, Elrondion, I actually knocked on the door and asked the Lady Arwen to let me in", Legolas tried to sound offended.

"I wonder what Adar would say at that", the first voice said.

"And I am quite sure he doesn't know that you are even here", the other voice added.

Arwen rolled her eyes.

"Come in here, you two, and stop that", she said.

Kili was surprised to see two elves entering the room. One was just looking like the other, they were tall and had long brown hair. They even wore the same expression on their faces and it dawned on Kili that they were twins. That was why their voices were so alike.

"Ai Elbereth, you have a dwarf in your room!", the right one shouted in surprise.

"Would you please be a little more quiet, Elrohir? There's no need to alert the whole valley!", Arwen hissed.

"Is this one of the dwarves that are Adar's guests today?", the other asked.

"No", Legolas said, standing up, and walked over to the pair.

"Then who is it?", the left one wanted to know.

Kili just stared at them and wondered again where he had landed. It was like the surprises would never end!

"My name is Kili", he said after another few moments when he had found his voice again.

"Oh, it can speak", the right elf, Elrohir, said and was instantly punched in the arm by Legolas.

"Good gracious, Legolas, what was that? Are you defending a dwarf? You of all people?", the other elf said with mock-surprise. Kili could tell that they just wanted to tease them, but he couldn't push the uneasiness away. After all, what had he expected? He was in an elven-city, and it was widely known that elves and dwarves didn't get along, so he shouldn't expect hospitality from everyone.

"I ask you, Elladan: Why shouldn't I?", Legolas retorted as he stood next to Elladan and raised his chin just a bit.

"Oh, I see, you are again trying to defy your father?", the other one shot back.

"I am not defying anyone, let alone my father. I am merely...", Legolas trailed off.

Kili was curious what the elf would say. He wondered why being with a dwarf was an act of defiance against Legolas' father and mentally noted to ask him about that later on. Anyway, if that meant defiance, Kili couldn't really expect the elf to bear with him for longer, although that thought made him sad.

"You are merely what?", Elladan asked, and his tone was not longer teasing but daring.

"Who are you to judge my companions, Elladan? As far as I know, I can choose whoever I like to travel with!", Legolas answered in an icy tone.

"Easy there, mellon-nin. I just wanted to tease you a bit", Elladan said, not wanting to infuriate Legolas, because after all, he was his father's son who was not known for his great patience or calm temper.

"And we dearly apologize to you, Master Dwarf, for we did not mean to offend you", Elrohir said, bowing slightly in Kili's direction.

The young dwarf looked at him, confused, and seemed to have lost his voice again. Not only Legolas had defended him, in a sense, no, the two intruders had also apologized to him! He was probably dreaming since something like that was just too wondrous to happen in reality!

"No harm done", he said in a low voice, suddenly feeling exhausted.

"Elladan, Elrohir, you can surely talk to my guests as much as you want tomorrow, but for now, I ask you to leave at least my patient alone", Arwen made herself known again, standing up and pushing the two elves in the direction of the door. She had noticed Kili's exhaustion and wanted to give him some room to get his much-needed sleep.

"But dear sister, we didn't even have the chance to introduce ourselves to your guest!", Elladan (Or Elrohir?) exclaimed.

"And we didn't get to know why you tend to dwarves now!", the other one added.

"That's a lovely thing you can meditate on tonight, Elrohir. I wish you the best of luck!", Arwen answered sweetly.

"But Arwen...", Elrohir almost pleaded.

"Out, you two, now! And the next time you want to come into my room, you'll come through the door and you knock! Understood?", Arwen said in that rather stern tone again.

"Understood, dear sister. But what I forgot to tell you...", Elladan started as he was pushed through the door.

"What have you forgotten to tell me?"

"That Adar wants to see you in his study. He wants to know your opinion about his new guests and so on", Elrohir answered instead of his brother as he too was pushed outside..

"Then I'll go and meet with him. Will you two be fine?", Arwen asked Legolas and Kili who nodded.

"Then I'll see you two later", she said before exiting the room as well.

Silence settled again, although the three siblings could be heard for another few moments, arguing in elvish as the walked away together.

Kili was still confused and didn't know what to think about first. He was so tired and his head and his shoulder ached with new force.

Legolas had gone back to the place where Kili had first spotted him this evening and looked outside. He seemed thoughtful and even a bit troubled.

"You should go to sleep", he advised gently after a while.

"I know", Kili said and pulled his blanket up. This bed was so soft and he was so tired that his eyes closed on their own. But then, a thought sprang to his mind.

"Legolas?", he called.

The elf looked at him.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Of course you can."

"Uhm, are you a prince?", Kili wasn't sure how to approach that and decided to simply ask.

Legolas looked startled for second. He frowned but then he started to laugh.

"At least you don't mind asking direct questions", he said and walked over to the dwarf's bed. He settled himself in a comfortable-looking armchair at one side of it from where he could talk to Kili face to face.

"As a matter of fact, I am", he simply said then.

"But why haven't you told me that so far?", Kili asked, feeling even more confused because of that revelation.

"First, I wasn't sure whether I could trust you. You shouldn't hold that against me, because with regard to the relationship between our two races, that is only justified."

"I won't", Kili assured him and looked him in the eye as to convince him that he meant what he had said.

"Then, I just chose to not do it because most people treat me like I could break at any point when they know that I am a prince. And I wanted you to befriend for who I really am and not just because of my title", Legolas said than and a shadow seemed to settle on his face.

"Well, it seems to me that you succeeded at that", Kili said, not only to chase that shadow away but also because he meant it.

"And I am glad I did", Legolas smiled.

They both sat there, just being content with the presence of one another. But then, Kili asked another question:

"So, where is your kingdom?"

"My kingdom? It's surely my father's kingdom, isn't it?"

Kili noticed that asking questions in return was just Legolas' way to avoid the touchier topics. It gave him time to think of a good answer. So Kili simply nodded, and waited for the elf to continue.

"To be honest, I am a bit reluctant to tell you, for I know the consequences of my answer. But then, I think you also deserve to know the truth", he stopped there, and Kili waited again, not wanting to put pressure on him.

"My father is the King Thranduil of Mirkwood and I am his oldest son and heir", Legolas said and looked down, not wanting to meet Kili's eyes and the emotions that crossed his face.

First, Kili was angry. Angry because Legolas had not told him of that rather precarious fact and instead had more or less pretended to be someone that he clearly wasn't. How did he dare to befriend him and act as if nothing had happened after not only his king but his father had not helped the dwarves of Erebor when they had needed them? But then, Kili looked at the elf who seemed almost ashamed now and the anger was replaced by something like sympathy. He realized that Legolas had just wanted to befriend him. He had wanted to get to know Kili and didn't want to scare him away just because of his heritage. Kili also realized that he himself was not better than Legolas because he hadn't told him of his kin either.

"Then I guess we are even", Kili decided to say to break the awkward silence between them.

Legolas' head shot up at that and he looked surprised.

"Why is that?"

"Because I haven't told you of my kin, too", Kili said. He was sure that Thorin, should he ever find out, would kill him for that (given that he would let him live for actually befriending the son of the elf he so much despised).

Legolas raised an eyebrow, both questioning and encouraging Kili to go on.

"Uhm, you know Thorin? Thorin Oakenshield?"

"How couldn't I? I have actually met him once or twice when my father insisted on me accompanying him on his travels to Erebor", Legolas replied, looking curious now.

"He is my uncle", Kili said with a small sigh.

Legolas looked thoughtful for a second, realizing the impact of that revelation. But then he smiled.

"Then it's an honor to meet you, young prince", he said then, still smiling.

"It's an honor for me as well to meet you, Prince Legolas of Mirkwood", Kili returned the smile.

After that, they sat in a more comfortable silence and Kili found his eyelids closing again. That talk had exhausted him even more. The last thing he heard from Legolas that evening, a "You know that we are going to be in serious trouble when my father or your uncle find out about this", made him smile as he drifted into another deep sleep.

* * *

Now, what do you think about that? Of course, there was no romance between Legolas and Arwen, because that would only end in heartbreak for Legolas ... after all, Arwen has to fall in love with Aragorn and so on. Anyways, I also let Elladan and Elrohir make a short appearance and I hope you liked that as well. As for the meeting of Kili and his family plus the other dwarves, I have special plans now... we'll see about the first part of the plan in the next chapter.

For now, I'd like to thank everyone who was so kind to leave a review behin for the previous chapters and would like to encourage the others to review this one as well... please? :) After all, I'd like to know what you think about Kili's and Legolas' reaction to the heritage (I hope that's the right word for it) of the other... and about all the other things that happened in this chapter. I know, there was no action and so on, but we have to deal with the dialogues as well, don't we? :)


	5. The letter

Hello!

Finally, I was able to finish another chapter, and I was surprised that it got quite long, too. Anyways, I hope you'll enjoy it as much as the last ones. There'll be a few new insights as well as progress with the plot.

Thanks to all my wonderful reviewers, your comments are always very encouraging for me.

But for now, on with the story:

* * *

**The letter**

The next morning found Kili sleeping in the soft, warm bed, but he soon woke up when the sun shone on his face. He opened his eyes and for a second, he didn't know where he was but then, it came back to him that he was in Arwen's chambers in Rivendell. It still seemed rather wondrous to him to be in an Elven city, under the care of an Elf, with another Elf as a new-found friend. Since he had left his home in the Blue Mountains not that long ago, so many things had happened and he had lived through a few adventures as well. Kili would lie to himself if he didn't admit that he wanted more adventures, especially since he had Legolas at his side who seemed to get out of whatever trouble he landed himself in.

But still, there were his brother and uncle and their companions. And that truly was a problem. Kili knew that he had to go and meet them, but he felt not up to that task. He was sure of how that would end: Thorin would be disappointed and livid, he would yell at his youngest nephew for everything he had done and would then turn away and not speak with him for probably a month. Fili would be disappointed as well, but he wouldn't say a thing. Fili would just look at Kili with a meaningful look that would speak of his disappointment and a silent, but strong accusation, and he wouldn't talk to him either. That would probably hurt the most. About the others, such as Balin and Dwalin and Glóin, Kili wasn't quite sure, but they would probably just agree with their leader, and if some would feel sympathy for him, they wouldn't dare to say it aloud.

Even with that rather dire outlook, Kili knew that he simply had to face them and he would rather do that earlier than later since it was inevitable. That was why he slowly got up then, careful not to move his left arm too much. When he was sitting in the bed, he finally noticed that someone was watching him.

Arwen was sitting in the same armchair Legolas had occupied at night before Kili had gone to sleep. The latter was standing near the doors that led to the balcony, and had watched the peaceful valley of Rivendell earlier, but was now also looking at the dwarf.

"Good morning, young Master Dwarf", Arwen greeted him, smiling friendly. She wore a violet dress and a few white flowers were in her hair.

"Good morning to you, too, Mylady", Kili answered after a second, still marveling at her beauty.

"What applies for Legolas, also applies for you, young friend!", she said, her eyes narrowing a bit.

Legolas chuckled.

"See what I mean, Arwen? You've just become too majestic to not call you a lady", he said then, teasing.

"I am not majestic!", she said, her eyes narrowing more, "If you don't stop with that nonsense at once, I'm not going to tell you two what I witnessed last night."

Legolas raised an eyebrow.

"And I'm going to break your bow, burn the pieces and let the wind blow the ash away!", she said, louder this time, and almost triumphant.

"You wouldn't", Legolas answered and raised his eyebrow even higher.

"Oh yes, I would!"

"If you do that, I'll tell your father that you sometimes sneak out, only armed with that kitchen knife, and look for -"

"It's a sword, not a kitchen knife, that's also something I have told you at least a hundred times. Are you wood-elves deaf or what?", Arwen interrupted him.

"Then you Noldor must be blind or disillusioned, since you take a kitchen knife for a sword", Legolas retorted, smirking.

"We are not – Legolas Thranduilion, I don't know why we are having this ridiculous discussion!", Arwen's voice grew quite deep so that it sounded quite comical.

As a result of that, Legolas started to laugh and she joined him. Kili on the other side didn't know what to do since he didn't understand what they were laughing about.

"I'll make sure to tell my sister of how well you can impersonate my father. She might want to have a contest with you", Legolas said, still smiling widely.

Arwen chuckled in response and then she faced Kili again.

"Well, young friend, how are you faring this morning?",

"Good, I guess", he replied without fully paying attention. He was rather trying to imagine how many siblings Legolas might have.

"Let me be the judge of it, since I have to change your bandages anyway", Arwen decided and quickly set to work. She unwrapped the bandages from Kili's shoulder and looked at the healing wounds. No infection had set in and although they looked rather painful, the would heal in a quite short time. She placed a cloth on the shoulder which had some of one of her father's ointments on it and then wrapped the bandage around it again. Then she helped Kili into his shirt that she had mended earlier.

Kili noticed that and gratefully thanked her for all she had done to help him.

Legolas had at first watched the two, but then he had resumed gazing out of the window, deep in thought. He and Arwen had talked about it all, and she had reassured him that if he planned it well, he could even convince his father that this friendship with a dwarf wasn't that bad. After all, she had argued, he didn't have to tell him that this dwarf was Thorin Oakenshield's nephew, did he? He could do that later after his father had gotten accustomed to their friendship. But then, he doubted that the king would accept it that easily. Well planned or not, it would take a lot of time and many talks. His mother, however, would have liked the thought that her son had found such an unusual friend. She would have supported him in convincing his father, and with her help, he wouldn't doubt his success. But Legolas' mother was gone... The elf shook his head. He didn't want to dwell on thoughts full of grief and loss again, he had been lost in them for too long. He had talked about that with Arwen as well, had told her about his original intentions, and she had been understanding. Arwen had also lost her mother, she knew how he felt.

"Now, here we go, young friend. You still have to be careful with your shoulder, but it heals well", Arwen's voice startled Legolas a bit, although he would never admit that. He had been too lost in his thoughts again.

"Thank you!", Kili smiled, happy to hear that.

"Arwen, you mentioned that you witnessed something last night...", Legolas started, banishing the last dark thoughts to the back of his mind and hoping that they would stay there.

"And you would like to know what it was", Arwen completed, looking pleased with herself.

"Exactly", Legolas answered and the dark shadow that had Kili could have sworn to see on his face, disappeared.

"But why should I tell you? It only concerns our young friend here, not you", she said sweetly.

"Because I asked nicely?"

Now it was Arwen's turn to raise an eyebrow.

"Because I am a nice person?"

She raised the other one as well.

"Because you like me a lot?"

"Hmm, let me think...", she said, smirking now.

"Well, as far as I'm concerned, Legolas can know as well", Kili intervened impatiently.

Legolas bowed to him.

"I thank you, Master Dwarf."

"It's your own head you're placing in a sling, young Kili, not mine", Arwen said with her eyebrows still raised.

"I'll take that risk", he replied, not sure what she was referring to.

Arwen smiled, content that these two already seemed to trust each other a lot.

"Well then, you two, you surely remember that I went to meet with my father yesterday evening. Unfortunately, my brothers had taken their time in letting me know about it and that was why my father had gone on to face another task. When I finally arrived at his study, he was talking to a dwarf. That dwarf was accompanied by another as well as Mithrandir and one halfling. Mithrandir was discussing with the first dwarf. I later recognized that this dwarf was actually Thorin Oakenshield, and I believe you two know him. Anyway, Mithrandir persuaded Thorin to show a map to my father who took it to a special place to read the hidden words on it. Of course, being the sister of my brothers, I followed them, still unseen and overheard their conversation as well as the message the map was holding", she told them, looking at the others. Legolas looked thoughtful yet curious, while Kili was watching her with wide eyes which encouraged her to continue.

"There seems to be a hidden entrance to the Lonely Mountain, some sort of a door, and the sun will shine upon the keyhole on Durin's Day. Thorin has the map as well as the key, so there might be some hope for those dwarves to get Erebor back. At least, they don't have to go knocking on the front door", she finished, smiling because of her own joke.

Kili's eyes had started to shine with excitement, with the wish for adventure. He couldn't help but smile because after all, his uncle seemed to have a plan! Legolas, on the other hand, seemed to be lost in his own thoughts, but when he finally looked up, Kili could see the same sparkle in his eyes.

"Oh no, you're not going to do that!", Arwen said sharply. She had recognized Legolas' excitement as well.

"I am not going to do exactly what?", Legolas answered.

"You're not going to steal the map or the key!", she said sternly.

"And what tells you that I was planning something as ridiculous and utterly foolish as that?"

"I know you, mellon-nin, I know you", she answered, sighing, but her mouth twitched slightly.

"I would never do such a thing!", Legolas snorted, but the sparkle had not left his eyes.

"So what are you planning then?"

"I haven't decided yet, dear Arwen. Maybe we should ask our young dwarven friend here what he plans to do?", the elf replied, turning his attention on Kili.

"I think I'll do what I must", Kili sighed. All hope vanished and was replaced with a rather unhappy feeling he couldn't really describe.

"And that would be?", Arwen inquired.

"I need to go to meet my uncle, tell him what happened and then wait for his decision whether he lets me accompany him or not", Kili answered, suddenly filled with the wish to crawl under the covers and hide there.

"And if he doesn't let you?"

Kili was silent at this.

"I don't know", he mumbled then, sounding defeated.

"Come now, young friend. Don't give up hope that easily. Maybe we can convince old grumpy Thorin to let you accompany them. After all, you went a long way to just meet him here. And if your sacrifices don't persuade him, I'll threaten to come with you on your way back to the Blue Mountains, and he surely won't have his nephew spoiled by the son of the Elven-king he so much despises", Legolas reassured him, and his eyes were sparkling. Nearly unseen though, was a shadow in them as well, speaking of how he didn't want to lose his new-found friend that early. But if it meant that the dwarf was happy and more or less safe, then Legolas would gladly help him become just that. After all, that was what friends did, right?

"Oh yes, especially with your reputation", Arwen added.

"My reputation?", Legolas raised his infamous eyebrow.

"Yes, your reputation to get in trouble wherever you go!", she laughed, but in her eyes was an unspoken question. Surely she had sensed his uneasiness.

Legolas winked at her and she seemed satisfied with that. Then, he was happy to discover that all that had at least brought a smile back on Kili's face.

"So, what are you two waiting for?", Arwen asked.

xxxxxxxxxx

Kili and Legolas each stood hidden behind a pillar and a few bushes, waiting. Although he felt quite dizzy and feared that his legs would just abandon him while walking, the dwarf had insisted on that. He wanted to see in what mood Fili and especially Thorin were before he went over to greet them. Legolas had agreed at that, he as well was a bit unsure how the dwarves would react on his appearance in particular. He was sure that Thorin would recognize him immediately and to say that he wouldn't be happy was an understatement. But both friends had never expected the scene that was happening in the small, open hall where the other dwarves, the wizard and the hobbit were staying, and it made Kili want to just disappear and to never come back.

"Thorin!", Gandalf had said just a few moment ago.

The dwarf had looked at him, questioningly.

"The bird I sent to your sister two days ago at your request, has returned with a message for you", the wizard had explained, holding out a small letter and giving it to Thorin.

That was just the moment Kili knew he was absolutely and entirely doomed.

Not daring to look at the scene in the hall and trying to hide even further in the bushes, Kili heard his uncle opening the letter and prayed to every god he knew that his mother hadn't mentioned his disappearance.

"Is she saying how Kili is doing? He surely wasn't happy to be left behind", that was Fili, his brother, eager and therefore impatient for news from their mother. Kili could hardly breath and felt sick as well.

There was a long silence from Thorin and just as the young dwarf decided to have a short look at his uncle – although there was a picture in his head, of Thorin's face turning first pale and then a very deep kind of red – he heard the sound of paper being scrunched together.

"U-uncle! W-what's wrong?", he heard Fili stutter and Kili knew that it was over for him.

"See for yourself!", Thorin said in an almost low voice, and the anger that this voice held was far worse than if he had yelled it.

Legolas shot him a worried glance and Kili just shook his head. He suddenly felt the urge to cry – all had seemed to become well again, but this letter, this small piece of paper decorated with his mother's handwriting, had destroyed it all.

"He did what?!", he heard Fili shout, almost squeak. Had he been in another situation, Kili would have laughed at that, but now, he closed his eyes in shame.

The next thing he heard were the questioning grumbles from a few other dwarves who couldn't understand what was happening. Then, there was a loud bang closely followed by another and another. That made it clear that someone – most likely Thorin – was kicking something around and it made it all worse for Kili.

"H-he ran away", Fili said then in small voice.

"He ran away!", he shouted then, and sounded so outraged and scared at the same time that Kili couldn't help but flinch.

"What?", bellowed Dwalin, a dwarf young Kili had feared as a small dwarfling for his gruff and intimidating appearance.

"Mother just says that he left a few days after us and she suspects he tried to follow us. She seems afraid because she hasn't heard from him since then", Fili said in that small, grave voice again, and Kili could imagine him pale and shaking, from rage or fear for him, he couldn't tell.

"But he hasn't caught up with us!", Dwalin said, sounding grave as well.

"That's exactly it! He might be lost, he might be in trouble, he might need help! We need to go and find him!", Fili shouted, sounding upset now and so worried that it made Kili's heart literally ache.

"And where will you look? You have no idea where he might have gone!", that was Thorin now, with a voice like thunder.

"But I can't – we can't leave him out there all on his own!", Fili argued, and from knowing his brother so well Kili could tell that he already had tears in his eyes. What was more, the younger dwarf could feel them forming in his own eyes as well.

"We've been on this journey for weeks now. He could be everywhere", Thorin argued, still sounding livid. After all, how foolish could his youngest nephew possibly be?

"But he's alone, uncle, he will die if we don't help him!", Fili shouted back, not able to form a conscious thought. Inside him, there was a turmoil of emotions, worry for his brother, anger because he had disobeyed him and at himself for not anticipating something like that, and fear for what had possibly happened to Kili, all alone on his own in the wilderness.

"I think his fate lies not in our hands now. Young Kili has made his decision and he has to live with the consequences as well as we have to", Gandalf tried to intervene before the whole situation escalated.

For a moment, there was silence and Kili dared to release the breath he had been holding.

"How can you be so heartless?", that was Fili, voice filled with anger that was now directed at his uncle and the old wizard.

"Excuse me?", Gandalf demanded, surprised by those words.

"How can you be so heartless to leave my brother out there alone, facing foes he hasn't even heard of, lost in the wilderness?", Kili had to shudder at that.

"Don't you realize? There's nothing you can do for him now!", Thorin bellowed.

"Fine. If that's what you think, fine", Fili said now, probably changing his tactics.

"Oh no, Fili, don't even think about it! I won't let you abandon this quest to look for this foolish brother of yours! If that idiot decided to go that way, we can't change that!", Thorin shouted.

And that did it for Kili. He couldn't stand it anymore. He couldn't stand the angry shouting, he couldn't stand his own cowardice and guilt anymore. Kili got out of the bushes as silently as he could, and ran away again. He ran through the hallways, through doors, through rooms, not knowing where he went, but not caring for it anyway. He stumbled for a few times, but forced himself further and further, running away from his situation and his feelings while tears blurred his vision. He didn't let them fall until he found a small, beautiful garden where he hid behind a tree, sliding down and not caring for his aching shoulder or his dizziness. After all, he deserved that.

When Kili finally set there and forced breath after breath into his burning lungs, he burried his head in his arms and started crying.

* * *

Soooo, what do you think? I know that seems rather cruel, but I hope nobody anticipated something like this to happen. ;-) I hope you still like it (and don't forget the review, please :D).

And I hope to get the time to write a new chapter soon, but I'm quite busy lately, so it might take some time.


	6. Into the mountains

Hello!

Finally I managed to finish another chapter... I planned to post it earlier, but a bad migraine has gotten in the way (and ruined my weekend :-/ ), and that's why that chapter is not as good as I wanted it to be. Anyways, I hope you'll enjoy it, since there's some progress in the plot and a cliffhanger in the end - couldn't help it :-).

I'd like to thank to all my awesome reviewers, your comments are always very encouraging! I made some cookies tomorrow when I felt better, I'll make sure to send you some :) :)

* * *

**Into the mountains**

Kili didn't how long he had sat there, and he couldn't care less. It all seemed unimportant to him now. He didn't feel his hurting shoulder anymore and he ignored the dizziness completely. What was more, he couldn't really describe all the feelings that were mixing up in his mind and some of them literally made his heart ache.

Kili hast stopped crying a while ago. But still, he had his eyes shut, and if his arms hadn't hugged around his legs, he would have covered his ears with his hands as well. The young dwarf just wanted to shut the world out, he wasn't interested in it, now that all seemed lost for him. After all, his uncle hated him! And what was far worse, was that his actions had resulted in worrying, in even scaring his big brother and that hurt the most. But Kili deserved that, since Fili and even Thorin, in his own way, now suffered because of him.

Another bad thing was that he now had absolutely no idea what to do. He simply couldn't face his family after all that had happened, even if a small, but mean voice in his head called him a coward for that. He could run away – again – but where could he go? Back home, to face his mother who probably would never look at him again for he had scared her too much this time? (The voice in his head told him that he deserved just that.) To Erebor, a place he had only heard of in stories and that he would most likely never find on his own? Somewhere no one would ever find him, just hiding from his life, his fate, his heritage, his family – everything that was important to him? None of these options sounded good to him and that was his dilemma: Not knowing what to do without someone who could guide him or who would offer advise!

Kili tore at his hair just out of frustration. He wanted to cry again, but he knew that crying would get him nowhere. He wanted to scream, to pound his fists on the ground, but all those things wouldn't make anything better, and so he didn't do them. He only tore at his hair again and if possible, his frustration grew even more.

"Pulling your hair out of your head won't help you. It will just make you look funny", a calm voice, with a hint of humor, remarked above him.

Kili dropped his hands instantly and looked up into the canopy of leaves over him.

"Sitting there and sulking won't help either", a small chuckle accompanied that.

"I'm not sulking!", Kili mumbled, clearly miffed now, but thankful that his mind was taken away from his own dark, hopeless thoughts.

"But anyway, you don't have to hide anymore", the voice went on, ignoring his comment.

"I am not hiding!", Kili said, crossing his arms in front of him. That caused a reaction of the other.

"I have to admit, I'd rather like dwarves defiant, since that seems to be just natural for your kind, than sad and looking so defeated", it commented and with the slightest rustle of leaves and a small 'thud', Legolas landed right next to him. Needing no invitation, he sat down next to the dwarf and gazed into the green around them, not saying a word for a while.

Kili felt a little awkward, not knowing whether he should say something or not, but then decided that no words were needed at this moment. He even felt a little bit comforted by Legolas' presence, thinking about the elf's words.

True, it was not like him to lose himself in his dark thoughts, to feel alone and to be undetermined. It made him feel out of place in his own body, it made him feel unsure of himself. And Legolas was right, he didn't like it either. But then, he didn't know how to become his old self again.

"You know, I've always enjoyed being outside, in the company of trees", Legolas' calm voice interrupted his thoughts again.

Kili waited for him to continue, curious what would come next.

"I've enjoyed it since I've been young, just watching them grow and bloom. I see their strength, their patience in growing, for they don't hasten in that process, they just give it its time", Legolas explained and Kili just let the words wash over him. He had never been interested in trees, they were there and he accepted it, not paying it another thought, but nevertheless, the elf's words sounded true to him.

"But what I've always marveled at the most, is that even if they lose their leaves and everything that made them seem strong and majestic in the winter and instead makes them look like life itself has left them, they manage to bloom again in spring. They grow leaves again, they rediscover their strength and with the young, fresh green in spring, the trees are always the most beautiful and strongest", Legolas mused and when Kili cast him a sideways-glance, he could see the elf smiling to himself. He saw a happiness and yet calmness at his face he had never seen there before and it made him happy as well, if only for a moment.

Then, he remembered what had made him despair and he started to feel that utter desperation again. But that was when it dawned on him what Legolas had really meant with his words and that he had not only spoken about the trees. He had spoken of himself, and he had spoken of Kili and that he knew that all would become well again and when Legolas had realized that, it had made him happy. To know that his new-found friend had found hope at his own words, made Kili feel hopeful as well. He realized now that even in the darkest time, when everything seemed lost, the world would go on and time would pass and after a while, all would be well again and even better than before.

"Thank you", he murmured than, turning to Legolas and feeling a small smile spreading on his face.

The elf nodded at that, his own smile growing even more. This time, it seemed to him like he had completely chased his own demons away and he was thankful at that. He was proud as well, for being able to do it by himself without going beyond the point of no return where he would have sailed, and he was proud of helping that young soul at his side as well before despair and regret made him miss all the things that the world still held for him.

"So, what are we going to do now?", Kili asked after a while, breaking the silence between them. Using the word 'we' now, after all that had happened, seemed just right to him. Even if he didn't know what had troubled Legolas that much, he knew that their friendship might have saved the elf this time as well and after something like that, it just seemed natural to him to think of accompanying the elf a little more. He had no other thing to do now anyway.

"Isn't that clear to you?", Legolas asked in return, excitement upon future adventures glistening in his eyes.

"Apparently not", Kili answered, smirking a little.

"Well, your forever grumpy uncle and his funny companions have probably left Rivendell by now. They are heading for the mountain pass, by the way, surely the fastest road over the Misty Mountains, but not the easiest and safest", Legolas paused there, giving Kili time to think about his words.

But Kili didn't need that.

"Then we have to follow them!", he almost shouted.

"What? Last time, you couldn't get away from them any faster, and now you want to follow them?", Legolas asked as if he was surprised.

"But if that's not the safest road, as you say, then we need to go after them and make sure that they stay safe!", Kili said and sounded even upset at that.

Legolas raised his eyebrow and Kili realized that the elf had anticipated his reaction and had just acted like that for the fun of it. Instead of saying another word, he just hit Legolas arm with his hand and felt satisfied because the elf actually looked a bit surprised.

"Ow!", he exclaimed, reaching for his arm.

"You deserved that", he said, snickering.

"Thank you very much!", was Legolas' sarcastic reply, but Kili could see his mouth twitching.

"You're most welcome!", he answered, mock-bowing his head.

The elf harrumphed at that, but his eyes were sparkling with humor. Then, he went serious again.

"Anyway, I have talked to Arwen and she instantly agreed on packing a few supplies for our journey", Legolas said, and the exciting glitter was back in his eyes.

"Thank you! Thank you so much!", Kili whispered, simply being grateful for everything, and that felt so much better than the despair.

"Although, she insisted that we wait until tomorrow for she wants to make sure that you are well enough to face another arduous journey", Legolas said, but he seemed pleased all the while.

"I can live with that", Kili replied smiling and felt even better when Legolas returned his smile at that.

xxxxxxx

The next morning, Kili and Legolas left Rivendell. Arwen had helped them packing and even her brothers had appeared again, chatting and arguing all the while with the other two elves, and after some time, they had started to joke with Kili as well.

It had become easy for the young dwarf to feel comfortable in the company of elves now. Even if they were still strange when it came to certain things, be it their love for nature (especially in Legolas' case who seemed to be able to spend hours sitting under a tree and doing nothing) or the way how they looked at things (after all, they were far older than Kili was, they had seen far more things and had watched them grow and then perish – it had made them wiser at a certain point) or how time seemed to be non-existent for them (they all were quite old, Kili could tell, even if he didn't dare to ask). But they could also be like children, especially those four elves could fool around and laugh about their jokes like there was nothing in the world that could ever stop their merriment. They had shared stories about some of their pranks and mishaps and Kili had learned that even if they all had had to face hard times, they had never completely lost their happiness. And that gave him hope.

Now he was walking behind Legolas who managed to find a way where Kili saw none. To be honest, he wasn't really interested in the way as well, and apart from the short glances downwards to not trip over every stone or root, the dwarf's eyes never left the majestic mountain range that now seemed so close that he could almost touch it if he reached out. There was simply no way to describe the astonishment he felt at that sight. True, he had been raised in the mountains, but the Ered Luin were simply nothing compared to the Misty Mountains. Captured by that sight, Kili nearly bumped into Legolas who had stopped and dropped the pack he had carried on his back.

"Easy there", the elf laughed as the dwarf jumped to the side in order to avoid running into him and nearly tripped over a small bush at that.

"That's all your fault!", Kili complained as his coat got caught on the small thorns of the bush.

"I dearly apologize for not having eyes at the back of my head", Legolas replied, smiling as he unpacked two apples and some of that bread that all elves seemed to carry around when they were on a journey. Arwen had insisted that he had to carry most of their supplies and that Kili only got to carry the light stuff because his shoulder still had to heal. Legolas had known better than to argue at that.

"Well, that would be a disadvantage for you anyway", Kili grinned.

"Why is that?"

"Because you wouldn't be able to see anything with that long hair of yours", Kili giggled and Legolas rolled his eyes.

"Why are we stopping now? It's hardly after midday and we still have to catch up with them!", the dwarf said then, still not taking any efforts to settle himself down.

"Don't worry, we've got a lot of time. They are not as fast as we are, and if you don't want to catch up with at the end of the day, we might as well rest for a while. After all, I've seen what you are capable of with the bow, but I have yet to see what you can do with that sword you insist to carry around", Legolas explained while handing Kili the apple and the bread-thing.

"So, we are following them over the mountains?", the young dwarf sounded excited now, ignoring Legolas' comment about his abilities with his weapons.

"Apparently we will, yes. It's the fastest way", the elf replied.

"And what about other ways? Like under the mountains?", Kili asked again and had one specific thought in mind.

"No way", Legolas said with a bit too much force.

"Don't tell me you are afraid to go underground", a wicked smile appeared on Kili's face.

"I am not! I just... don't like it there", Legolas answered, pressing his lips together.

"Of course", Kili replied, stretching every syllable quite long to make it sound ironic.

"Anyway, you wouldn't like to go that way either. Moria is just no option", Legolas said determinedly, not liking the shining eyes of the dwarf when he mentioned the ancient dwarven city.

"But it would surely be an adventure!", Kili replied slyly.

"Then you can gladly go on that adventure when I'm not near you", was the answer he got and the dwarf was clever enough to drop the topic since the elf didn't like it at all.

After that, they were eating in silence, and Kili thought back on the topic that was even haunting his dreams: How was he supposed to meet with his family again? He couldn't just go to them, greet them and pretend that nothing had happened – for they surely wouldn't do something like that. Maybe he could appear in a dire situation and they would be happy that he was there to aid them, but after they were out of danger, the yelling and Aule knew what kind of other things would start. Perhaps if he got injured by rescuing them, they wouldn't yell at him that much in the beginning, but there were two obstacles: First, Kili was not keen on getting hurt, and second, when he was healed, they could still be mad at him.

"You know, I don't even think that Thorin would be the scariest one to face", Legolas interrupted his thoughts, and again it felt like the elf had read his mind.

"I'm quite sure he would", Kili replied after he had recovered from being startled out of his thoughts.

"No, believe me, if you actually managed to anger Mithrandir, or Gandalf, as you call him, then that's something much more horrible", the elf said, trying to distract the dwarf with something that would surely end in a little argument.

"You're right at that, Gandalf can be very scary, but when one has faced the wrath of Thorin, one knows that there's simply nothing that can be as scary as that", Kili countered, remembering a few incidents when he had been at the receiving end of Thorin's rage.

"I used to think the same, that nothing can be as terrifying as my father when he is angry. But then, I accidentally got too close to Mordor and the Dead Marshes a few centuries ago and I got lost and nearly drowned. Believe me, that's something I'd rather not relive since there are spirits there in the marshes, spirits of the dead, and they try to capture and then drown their victims. Mithrandir found me by chance and rescued me, and after I had recovered, I received the worst lecture you can imagine. I don't want to go into detail there, but believe me, I felt so foolish, ashamed and guilty afterwards that I wanted to hide under my bed and never come out again", Legolas told him, and when he mentioned the marshes and the spirits, Kili could see a shadow traveling over the elf's face that told him of the horrors of such a place.

"That might be true, but Thorin doesn't need to a say word when he is angry, he just looks at you and you feel so small and defenseless that even the thought of running away never comes to your mind. I was once trying to sneak into my mother's kitchen to steal some cookies she had made an hour ago – my mum's cookies are just the best! But in the kitchen, there were uncle and Balin, and they were discussing about Erebor. I hid behind the big basket where the wood for the fireplace was kept and listened to them, too afraid to make myself known or to sneak out again. I honestly can't even remember what they were talking about, just that I was very frightened by the things they said. I let out a small whimper when Balin mentioned the dragon and the destruction it caused and Thorin heard me. It didn't take him long to find me and then he just stared at me with a look that made the hair stand on my neck. I couldn't sleep properly for nights after that", Kili told a story of his own and Legolas smiled.

"I don't see where this is funny", the dwarf grumbled then.

"Well, he got it from his grandfather", Legolas said, still smiling.

"You knew Thror?", Kili asked excited.

"Yes, I did. Remember I told you that I had to accompany my father on a few trips to Erebor? Thror was the last real king under the mountain, and he was known for just staring at persons that did something he didn't like and make them run away in fear with that", Legolas explained.

"And did you?", Kili asked, now grinning as well.

"Excuse me?"

"Did you run away in fear?"

"No, of course not. I never did something wrong on my visits there", Legolas told him with a serious expression on his face, but his eyes betrayed him.

"And why don't I believe you?"

"That's a question you should ask yourself, not me."

Kili raised an eyebrow, a habit he had easily adopted.

"Alright, you got me there. But let's save those stories for another time. I'd like to see your abilities with the sword now", Legolas said after a while, changing the topic.

Kili made a mental note to ask him again what he had done to anger the great king under the mountain, but then, after finishing his apple – he had grown accustomed to a diet with more fruit and less meat – he engaged in some sparring with Legolas.

xxxxx

It had taken them more than a day to finally reach the mountains, and the excitement Kili had felt at first, swiftly disappeared after climbing the steep path up the mountain slope for a few hours. Again, he marveled at the elf's agility and endurance because Legolas didn't even have to stop to catch his breath. He didn't seem to tire either, but stopped a few times for the dwarf's sake. Kili's shoulder wound had began to hurt more and more, and he was sure it was because it was either healing or because of the strain of the climb. Still, he was too stubborn to ask the elf for help or for more stops, but Legolas seemed to understand it anyway. He made them stop for longer, telling the dwarf that they still had enough time left and that there was no need to hurry.

After climbing for a whole day, Kili silently cursed the sun for burning down on him with such a force that he more than anything wished for being in the shade. Even if the air grew colder which should have eased the heat a bit, it grew also thinner and made it harder for him to breathe. By nightfall then, it started to rain and after walking and climbing for what seemed like ages, Kili wished for the sun to come back. He was soaked to the bone now, he was freezing, he was more than exhausted and his shoulder was hurting. All in all, he was utterly and completely miserable and prayed that Legolas would finally find shelter for them so they could rest for the night. Kili imagined that he would just drop down on the ground and sleep for at least 20 hours to compensate for his exhaustion, when Legolas who walked in front of him, suddenly stopped. Of course Kili's tired mind couldn't register that fast what was happening and tell his body to stop walking as well, and so he bumped into Legolas who stumbled forward. Hadn't it been for the elf's fast reflexes, they both would have fallen down into the abyss that was in front of them, but he managed to grab the stone wall next to him and steady the two of them.

"That was close!", the elf exclaimed while Kili peered around him and instantly had a strange feeling in his stomach when he saw the abyss as well. Then, he heard the crashing sound of thunder and it made him jump.

"Where is the path?", he asked then.

"Over there", was the answer and Kili followed Legolas' outstretched hand to look over to where the path continued. Between them and this part of it, although, was a large gap.

"And now?", he asked, already knowing what was coming and not liking it at all.

"We jump", Legolas answered as if that was the easiest thing in the world.

"I can't jump that far", Kili mumbled, feeling a bit ashamed for his short legs.

"Excuse me?"

"I can't jump that far", Kili repeated a little louder this time, completely missing the teasing in the elf's voice.

"Well, then I'm going to throw you", Legolas replied and a smirk appeared on his face.

"Nobody tosses a dwarf", Kili grumbled in response.

"So you'd rather stay here?"

"No, I'm going to jump!"

"But you just said that you're not going to make it", the elf objected.

"I changed my mind!", Kili answered with as much determination and courage in his voice as he could muster.

Legolas thought for a second, then nodded. After that, he leapt over the gap and landed safely on the other side. He turned and looked at the dwarf.

Kili bit his lip. For a second, he cursed his own stubbornness, but then, he decided that he had to do this. He had to proof that he was able to do whatever was necessary to go after his family, and he had to proof that mostly to himself. Kili went a few steps back, breathed deep and even. Then he ran and jumped.

It was almost like flying, the rain was splashing on his face, the wind was roaring in his ears, thunder was crashing and lightning was illuminating the world around him. Then, it was over and Kili would have landed on Legolas if the elf hadn't stepped back. That was why he landed on the hard, rocky ground, but instead of feeling the pain in his knees and hands from the landing, he felt proud of himself.

Legolas helped him up, but seemed otherwise occupied. Kili could easily see what disturbed the elf for it looked like an avalanche of rocks had gone down only a few feet in front of them. Large boulders lay on the path and at the bottom of what was probably a valley, surrounded by steep slopes, there were many larges rocks as well. For Kili who had worked with stones for quite some time, it was clear that they had not been lying there for long.

"What happened here?", he said.

Legolas shook his head, indicating that he had no idea.

"Seems like this way is blocked", he commented then.

"Not necessarily", Kili answered, feeling adrenaline rush through his veins when he discovered something that looked like the entrance to a cave. He ran to it and discovered that it was just that, the entrance to a cave, to a shelter, and possibly the entrance to a way through the mountain.

"Stop!", Legolas called with a strange voice, and it made the dwarf stop almost instantly.

"You don't know what's in there! It could be another abyss, it could even be a trap!", he explained in a voice that sounded anything but calm.

"And that's why going in there is the only way to find out!", Kili argued, sounding almost excited now.

"But it's dark in there! You won't see a thing!", Legolas countered, now almost desperately.

"We can't stay out here. There's clearly no way to go around those boulders on the path, and we need shelter. I don't know about you, but if I don't get a good night's sleep in a dry place, I'm going to fall ill!", Kili continued. He knew that that was a bit unfair to say because Legolas had be quite mindful of his mortal needs such as sleep and possibilities to rest and eat. But he needed to convince the elf.

Legolas had bitten his lips at that. Kili was right, they needed to find shelter, they needed to dry their clothes and rest, but he simply didn't like going underground. He had never liked caves and sometimes it even became unbearable for him to be in a house for too long. He simply needed to feel the wind in his hair, to feel the life in everything around him, but those stones were dead and dull.

But before either of them could say another thing, they heard voices. First, they were not that loud, but then, even screams could be heard, accompanied by the screeches of goblins. Both friends knew that Thorin and company were the only ones who had taken this path, and if there were goblins in this cave, they probably needed help.

Kili forgot all his fears of his uncle's and brother's wrath as he stormed into the cave only to see that the cave floor had opened and swallowed everybody that had been in there. To his horror, the voices of the unfortunate dwarves were now drowned in the triumphant screeches of goblins and the trap-door in the ground started to close again. Without thinking for a moment, he jumped into the abyss before him only to be pulled back by Legolas.

"Not like that!", the elf hissed, now looking determined, but also quite unhappy.

Then the elf himself jumped down, taking the still struggling dwarf with him, and Kili could only hope that the other had a plan as he closed his eyes, awaiting a rather unpleasant landing.

* * *

What do you think? Quite some progress with the plot, leaving Rivendell, traveling into the mountains and discovering the place where the stone giants' battle has taken place (explanations why our two heroes haven't heard it will follow - sort of). Also, I couldn't help but write the "nobody tosses a dwarf"-thing... it was just too tempting ;).

As for the next chapter, we'll see how they deal with the Goblin king. What's more, I'm probably going to introduce an OC, just for the fun of it, and we'll see what Azog is up to... Sounds great to you?! I hope so :)


	7. A Journey in the Dark

Hello everyone,

finally, I was able to finish the next chapter... took me some time, I admit, but anyway, it's finished now.

Thanks to all my awesome reviewers and supporters, without you, I wouldn't update at all. I would leave the story probably unfinished, always adding parts and deleting others, but never finding an end. And that would be quite bad, wouldn't it? ;)

Now, enjoy the next chapter!

* * *

Next one

Even if it nearly made his shoulders pop out of their sockets, Legolas stopped his and Kili's fall by grabbing a small ledge he had spotted only half a moment before. He could suppress the groan of pain, but not the hiss that made it past his lips. As they were dangling there on the ledge and Legolas bit his lip for it strained his arms – one grabbing the ledge and the other holding Kili – the only thing the elf could think about was that he had known that something terrible would happen when he entered a cave and that all the things that were now happening proofed just that. To distract himself from the pain and also looking for a chance when he could let go, he gazed down. There, a few feet below them, were the other dwarves, tangled up with each other and completely disorientated. But he couldn't hear their surprised shouts for the screeching and roaring of the goblins that now approached and captured them, was too loud. Had Legolas liked any of those dwarves, he would have felt pity for them, because those goblins surely weren't gentle. Suddenly, Legolas thought he had spotted something else, something familiar that seemed not at all dwarfish, but when he blinked, it had disappeared. Still, it didn't leave his mind completely, and he felt a small, yet present urge to investigate what had irritated him so much.

When the last goblin had disappeared from sight and the noise they were making was also fading, Legolas looked down at his friend, trying to keep any trace of the pain in his arms out of his face:

"Are you ready?"

Kili simply nodded, and Legolas noticed that he was quite pale now.

Letting out a small sigh of relief, Legolas let go and they fell down. The elf landed on his feet and had his bow and an arrow ready in an instant, prepared to shoot at any sign of danger.

Kili stumbled a bit, but then he copied Legolas' stance and readied himself for any foe, but there were none. It was nearly completely silent now, silent and dark. Only far away, he could hear the screeching goblins, and it made Kili feel a bit relieved.

Legolas, on the other hand, didn't like being in the nearly complete darkness, for he could see nothing and felt uneasy at that. He tried not to think about being buried deep under tons of rocks. He tried not to think about staying in the dark for so long, where no star would shine, where no moon would be able to light his path, where no breeze would blow through his hair and on his face, blowing all the dread and fear away. Yes, Legolas was scared of that darkness under the mountain, and he didn't feel ashamed of that (at least not when he admitted it to himself, admitting it to Kili was another thing). It made him feel vulnerable, weak and small, and it made him feel dead. Dead because he couldn't feel the life of everything around him, dead because people of his lineage were always buried in tombs, under the ground, when they had died. And Legolas dearly wished that this mountain was not going to become his tomb, too.

"Are we going to follow them or what do you suggest?", Kili asked, sensing that something was wrong with the elf, but not being able to pinpoint it.

"Seems like the only thing left for us to do, since I have no idea where the exit might be", Legolas answered in a grave voice.

Kili almost winced in sympathy at that. He was just glad to be sheltered from the storm and the rain, and even if his clothes were still wet and he had started to shiver even harder from the cold, he felt better under the mountain than in any forest. Although he didn't like that cave-system they were in because it made him feel trapped (He blamed it on the goblins – those beasts just stank, literally, and the whole cave stank of them as well!), even the thought of the Mines of Moria, the glorious home of his kin, its wealth and all the tales he had heard of it, made him feel excited and restless.

"So... what do we do when we reach them?", Kili asked to keep them from falling into silence again.

"I absolutely have no idea. But I'd say it mostly depends on the surrounding area and on how many goblins there are", Legolas answered and almost sounded defeated.

"We'd better go then, waiting would do nobody any good"; Kili said then, starting to follow the unsteady path of wooden planks over to another narrow path of stone next to the wall.

The wood under his feet groaned and he heard Legolas sigh.

"We don't even have a torch", the elf complained as he followed the other. First, he thought it odd that for once Kili was leading them, but then he had to see that this was just the only way to do it. He himself didn't know where to go, he was totally disorientated for his senses were dulled by the never-ending darkness and the lack of life around him.

"I can see just fine."

"I can see just fine as well", Legolas muttered in response, sounding defiant.

"Then why do you need a torch?", Kili said in an almost daring voice. He'd gladly start a banter with Legolas if it kept the elf's thoughts off the darkness, and honestly, when had he ever needed a reason to banter with him anyway?

"So that you can see where you are stepping, foolish dwarf", was the reply.

"Come now, as if that is the only reason why you need a torch!"

"It is!"

"Are you sure?", Kili couldn't help a grin spreading on his face as he held a hand out for support of the wall.

"Of course I am", Legolas replied, frowning.

"And you aren't afraid of the dark?"

"What makes you think that? I am completely fine!", Legolas tried to sound convincing.

"Being fine doesn't exclude being afraid", Kili remarked and made it sound like he was talking about the weather.

"But I am not!", Legolas almost sounded like a child now and Kili had to smile even more when he imagined the elf pouting.

"You are not what? Fine or afraid?"

"I don't even know why I'm answering you at all", Legolas grumbled, looking around.

They had made some progress and the screeches of the goblins seemed to grow louder with every step. As they were nearing them, the light from numerous torches started to illuminate their surroundings as well, and Legolas wished it wouldn't. Of course, it made it easier for them to see, but hiding got more and more difficult. Another fact was that he absolutely didn't like what he could see: hundreds and hundreds of goblins! But thankfully, they were focused on something else. Then, Legolas heard Kili gasp beside him and nearly missed the chance to grab the dwarf's shoulder when he wanted to run forward.

"Let me go!", he hissed, struggling.

"Calm down, foolish dwarf", Legolas hissed back.

Kili stood still after another few struggles and shook away Legolas' hand.

Then he turned so that he could look in the elf's face.

"Those goblins – they're going to kill them!", he said in a low, yet urgent voice and his hand was motioning for the dwarves that stood on a stone platform, stripped of their weapons, facing a massive monster of a goblin that, even from the distance, nothing could match when it came to ugliness.

"And you think rushing in there will prevent it?", Legolas argued back while his mind had already started to work on a plan. Even if he didn't feel keen on rescuing a whole bunch of dwarves, especially when at least one of them hated his father and his whole race, he had spotted something else that had made his heart stop for a second.

"No, but staying here and arguing won't help either!"

"I am not the one who is arguing!", Legolas shot back while his heart started to beat faster and faster. He needed to think of something, but nothing came to his mind.

Kili glared at him. Then he breathed deep, bit his lip and looked Legolas in the eye.

"So what do you propose?"

"First, we need to get into hearing distance and see what they are up to. Then, we can decide what actions we should take", Legolas said after a moment.

Kili nodded, trying not to think of what could happen to his brother or uncle in the meantime. He also tried not to think about what would happen to him when they saw him. But maybe, just maybe, when he rescued them, they would see that it actually made sense to take him with them and therefore wouldn't send him back home.

Legolas went forward, and Kili followed him, always paying attention on staying hidden in the shadows. That way, they weren't seen by the goblins which were roaring and screeching constantly, sometimes so loud that Kili wanted to close his ears with his hands. He couldn't, for Legolas had chosen to climb a bit until they were near the platform where the other dwarves were held. Only, they were under it.

"If the need arises, we can be up there in less than a minute", the elf whispered. He had put on his hood to hide his golden hair that would have shone in the light of the torches like it normally did and therefore would have attracted the enemy's attention.

Kili had followed his example, but with another intention: he wanted to hide his face as much as possible, to not make his presence known to his family should they see him and to not make his relationship to especially Thorin known to everyone who looked at him. Kili's hands gripped at the stones, and his arms started to shake from the exertion and the excitement he felt. Occasionally, it seemed like Legolas' body trembled as well.

"What's wrong?", Kili whispered, also noticing that the elf's lips which were pressed into a thin line, especially because it was the only part of his face that wasn't hidden by his hood.

"Nothing", the elf grumbled.

"Stop lying to me", Kili shot back.

Legolas didn't answer and looked away.

Kili heard someone roar with laughter, presumably the big goblin, who, judged by its size and that he had sat on something like a throne when Kili had last seen it, surely was the king. He heard the other goblins roar and screech in response and couldn't help but shudder at that. Before he could ask Legolas again what was wrong, the elf had faced him again.

"We need to find a better place", he said in a low voice.

"Why's that? I thought this place was just fine", Kili argued back just for the sake of arguing, since his arms had started to really hurt and his fingers had already started to feel numb.

"But I don't think it good enough now", Legolas answered and his lips were again pressed together in a thin line, so tight that all the blood seemed to leave them.

"So you're saying that we made this way for nothing? We can clearly hear what's going on from here and if the need arises, we can step in in no time", Kili answered and found it hard to not raise this voice. Why, for Aule's sake, had the elf changed his mind now?

"But we can't see what's going on!"

"Couldn't you think of that earlier?", Kili almost sounded annoyed now.

"I didn't, it was a mistake and I apologize. Can we go now?", Legolas sounded urgent now. He hoped that an apology would save him needless arguing.

Kili stared at him for a second. Normally, the elf wouldn't admit that he did something wrong. Normally, he wouldn't apologize. And what was more, normally he wouldn't make such a mistake at all. So what was wrong with him?

"What's the matter with you?", Kili asked, choosing the direct way to approach the topic again.

"Nothing!"

"I don't believe you!"

Legolas sighed in defeat.

"I'll show you once we get to the place that I've spotted from here. From there, we should have a good look at what's going on and we can step in if we need to. Happy now?", he couldn't help but sound annoyed at that last sentence.

"Completely", Kili answered, ignoring the elf's tone and smiling instead.

Legolas couldn't help but smiled himself, if only just for a short moment. That dwarf never ceased to amaze him.

It took them some time to reach the spot Legolas had found, because they needed to remain unseen to their enemies. It took a lot of climbing and when they finally reached it, Kili was sweating from exertion. Dwarves were just not made for climbing walls! Now, his hands were bleeding from a few cuts and when he had nearly slipped off the wall, he had scraped his arm. The fabric of the sleeve was badly torn and nearly beyond fixing.

"See what you've done!", Kili complained and waved his arm.

"What I've done? I surely didn't nearly fall off that rock", Legolas retorted though a smirk appeared on his lips. If he hadn't worn a hood, Kili would have seen his eyes sparkling in amusement.

"But it was you who made me climb a detour!"

"Would you stop that already? You are worse than an old fishwife!"

"An old WHAT?", Kili had raised his voice now, and thankfully the roaring and screeching of the goblins was louder, otherwise this would have given them away.

"Keep it quiet, will you?", Legolas grumbled, but couldn't help smirking all the while.

"You are a fishwife", Kili mumbled, .

"I heard that", Legolas responded and for a second, Kili wanted to throw something at the elf to keep him from smirking.

Instead, he focused on the platform not so far away. Although the two of them were hidden in the shadow between some large rocks, Kili couldn't help but feel as exposed to the enemy as the other dwarves were over there. They had been stripped off their weapons, now lying in a rather large pile not so far away from them, guarded by three ugly goblins. Ugly was indeed the only adjective Kili could think of to describe those creatures, and some of them which had placed themselves around the dwarves in their midst like a couple of wolves around their prey - ready to srike - were such nasty beasts that Kili was sure they would haunt him in a few of his more violent nightmares.

"We could kill those three goblins and take the weapons", he said, more to himself, but Legolas had heard him anyway.

"Although that would be fairly easy, it won't help us. What are we going to do with those weapons? Before we can hand them back to their owners, the other goblins will have discovered us and that would be a problem", the elf answered.

"But there's clearly no way of rescuing them without alerting the goblins", Kili argued.

Legolas looked thoughtful for a second, peering over the rock he was crouched behind. The dwarf, on the other hand, wasn't that tall and didn't have to crouch. For the first time on that journey, Kili was thankful for being so small because the position Legolas was in, looked rather uncomfortable.

"That might be true, but let's wait for the right moment", the elf then answered, his brow furrowing a bit.

Before Kili could comment on that, the goblin king roared with laughter and the young dwarf felt a shiver run down his spine. He heard the goblin mocking someone, and recognized the smaller figure in front of him: his uncle Thorin. At least he was alive. Right next to him stood Fili, his nephew and heir, and Kili felt a warmth running through his body at his brother's sight who didn't seem to fare too bad for he could stand on his own feet without help. That warmth, he only realized how much he had missed it now that he saw his brother and felt it again. But then, an ice-cold fear gripped him, the fear of losing Fili. And what made it all worse: If he lost him now, he would never get the chance to make things right between them.

But then, Kili spotted another person that immediately caught his attention: an elf! An elf was accompanying Thorin! But his uncle surely wouldn't let – or would he?

"There's an elf!", was Kili's hushed cry for his mouth worked faster than his brain.

"I know", was Legolas' dark reply. After another few seconds, Kili realized that that elf must have been the reason for Legolas' bad mood! But that could only mean -

"Do you know him?", Kili said in a almost normal voice as the goblins' screeching and roaring grew louder again.

"I don't know him", Legolas said, "But I know her."

"He's a she?", Kili said, taken aback. That was just not possible! Even dwarven women didn't engage in fights if it wasn't necessary, so what did Elven women who were far more mindful of staying clean and beautiful, do in such a place?

"No, she's a she", Legolas replied, and the smirk was back on his face.

Kili was still confused by what was clearly happening before his eyes – Thorin in the company of a she-elf! Thorin, who hated this race nearly as much as orcs, took one of them with him on his journey to reclaim his lost kingdom, a journey he didn't even think his own nephew fit enough to go on!

"So, are you close?", Kili tried to focus on something else than that awful thought that had come to his mind and that was eating at him. Interrogating the elf seemed like a good alternative!

"Excuse me?", Legolas said and he could imagine him raising his infamous eyebrow.

"So you are close. Is she you girl?", Kili asked again, thinking back on how upset the elf had seemed when he first discovered that that woman was in danger and hadn't told his companion of it.

"Is she my – No!", Legolas fully faced him now, although he couldn't see his eyes.

"Your wife?!", Kili guessed, trying to imagine Legolas as a husband or even a father – and failing at it. He simply did not fit the role.

"Good gracious, no! What makes you think that I'm in a relationship with her?", Legolas answered, sounding somewhat incredulous.

"You were clearly upset to see her in such a danger and you didn't want to tell me about her. People in secret relationships do such things", Kili responded, knowing that the elf wouldn't like this comment, while he tried to think of another way those two could be related.

"You are impossible!", the elf murmured, his eyes back on the she-elf.

"Is she your secret lover then?", Kili asked again, noticing that their hair had the same color. Or probably they were -

"No! Now stop that!", Legolas was annoyed now.

"I won't stop until you tell me why she means so much to you!"

"See, you're again acting like an old fishwife, always wanting to hear the latest gossip even if it isn't true!"

"I am not a fishwife, and stop avoiding my questions. Or did I hit a nerve?", Kili knew he acted like a pain in the neck, but he couldn't help it. Also, pictures of his furious uncle and his disappointed brother turning away from him had started to come to his mind again, so he tried to chase them away.

Legolas sighed heavily.

"I don't even know why I'm keeping you!", he muttered then.

"Now I know! She's your mother!", Kili almost cheered, but tried to keep his voice hushed, and instantly wished he hadn't. Legolas' lips pressed together again, until it looked almost painful. But that only lasted for a second, then a slight tremor went through the elf's body and he sighed again, clearly trying to sound annoyed and pretending that nothing had happened. Kili made a mental note to never bring up the topic of Legolas' mother until he thought the elf was ready to face it.

"If you really need to know: She's my sister", Legolas said and Kili immediately stared at him for a few moments, making him regret that he advised the dwarf to wear his hood, because he would have given a lot to see his face now.

"Your s-sister? You have a sister?", the dwarf stammered then.

"She wouldn't be my sister if I didn't have one, right?", Legolas shot back, silently laughing to himself about his own joke and the dwarf's surprise at his revelation.

But Kili recovered quickly.

"Then I hope she's at least a little more fun to be with than you are", he grumbled at the laughing elf which only made him laugh harder.

After the elf, still having an eye on his sister, had calmed down – Kili had tried to imagine her while staring at her back, forgetting his own worries for that time – the dwarf commented:

"Can we now focus on rescuing them?"

"I don't think so", said a voice full of malice and wickedness behind them.

Kili could feel Legolas tense next to him, bow already in his hand and ready to turn and fire an arrow at whoever was behind them while he tightened his grip on his own bow and at the same time cursed himself. Too focused on their banter and their family members, they had forgotten that they were still in danger, and now they had to pay the price.

* * *

I admit, it's not hard to see that this chapter was quite a struggle... but now it's finished, and I hope the next one will get better!

Anyways, what do you guys think? I hope you like my OC (sort of, she hasn't been introduced yet, and is just there because I thought it would be funny). And I hope she doesn't spoil the story for you - after all, Legolas needs to have a sibling to go to when Fili and Kili are reunited, right?

In any case, thanks for reading (and for hopefully sharing your opinion with me) ! :)


	8. Light!

Hello everyone,

I know, it took me some time again, but eventually I've even finished that chapter (it was even harder to write than the previous one...). Now I'm tired and the next thing I'll do is go to bed, but first, I need to post this to not keep you waiting that much longer.

Thank you for all your support, especially the reviews. It was great to get to know what you thought about my last chapter, even if some don't seem to like my OC, Legolas' sister, that much ... I can assure you, she'll only play a minor role, she's been just thrown in there for fun, and I haven't even found a name for her yet (Any suggestions?)... so don't expect too much of her.

But for now, enjoy reading! :)

* * *

"3..2..1", Legolas all but murmured, just loud enough for Kili to hear, and then he turned, fast enough that his movements seemed like a blur to everyone watching and half a second after this, an arrow was shot between the eyes of an orc.

Kili was a little bit slower than the elf, but he turned around as fast as he could, and aimed his arrow at the next being he found – another orc! Without thinking about it twice, he let it fly and the beast was hit in the throat, making a strange gurgling sound while it fell down.

Getting the next arrow ready to fire, he looked around. Instead of goblins, like he had expected, they were surrounded by orcs, large, ugly creatures that had haunted his nightmares when he was a child and occasionally did even now that he was an adult – even if nobody but he himself knew that. Kili let fly another arrow and after the next orc went down (and another two, felled by Legolas' arrows), the ugly creatures, armed with long, dirty swords and maces, overcame the shock that had halted their movements when their victims, who had seemed like easy prey, had fought back that forcefully. Now they lifted their swords and maces and nearly threw themselves at the elf and the dwarf, but a barked order by someone in the background – Kili recognized the voice which had alerted them to the orcs before – stopped them.

Kili released the breath he hadn't realized he had been holding, and slung his bow over his back, replacing it with his sword. If it came to a fight in close quarters, he'd surely do better with that weapon. In the corner of his eye, he saw that Legolas had already drawn his twin-knives and had beheaded an orc and pierced the chest of another before the orc's order had kept them from coming closer. Had Kili been able to see the elf's face, he could have seen the hatred in his eyes. Elves in general hated orcs for they reminded them of the crime that had been done to their kind, all those centuries ago, when Morgoth had tortured elves until they became ugly creatures full of hatred. And they hated them for what they had done to the other people of Middle-Earth, killing, torturing, harming and bringing sadness, despair, horror and loss to them. Legolas had seen too many things, had lost too many people to those creatures, and the cold fury that coursed through his veins whenever he faced those enemies had morphed him into a calm yet deadly and even more dangerous fighter, was the same many of his kind felt in battle.

Kili held his sword in his hand and looked at the orcs, asking himself how they had gotten in so much trouble and wondering how they would get out of this, preferably unharmed. He had never fought real orcs with only his sword to defend himself. When he had killed a few of them near Rivendell, he had had time to prepare himself, but now, he was still kind of surprised and even if he had killed two of them out of reaction, there were still many left, too many for only an elf and a dwarf to fight, especially when they were also surrounded by thousands of goblins.

Kili bit his lip, trying to think of a plan, when another orc stepped forth, presumably the leader. He had pale, nearly white skin that seemed to glow in the light of the torches, but it was not the same kind of glow that came from Legolas. It only made Kili feel horribly uncomfortable, and it held nothing of the grace and beauty – again something he would never say out loud – of the elves. His eyes travelled over the orc's body which was carved with strange tattoos. In one hand, the beast held a large mace and the dwarf was sure the orc could break his skull with it with only one strike. He swallowed hard and then looked at the other arm, but there was only half of it left. The forearm and hand were replaced by something that looked like a metal hook, and a strange feeling crept upon him, making the hair on his neck stand. It took Kili all of his strength to suppress a shudder, because the only orc he knew of that had pale skin and had lost an arm, was Azog the Defiler, the enemy from Balin's stories. The old dwarf had more than once told them of the great battle where his great-grandfather had been killed by said orc and where Thorin had wounded said orc badly and where he had gotten his name – Oakenshield. But Kili's uncle had killed Azog, so that couldn't be him, could it?

"Now, what do we have here? A dwarf and a man, what an honor!", the orc mocked them in that awful voice that sent shivers down Kili's spine. Even if that wasn't Azog the Defiler, (Really, it couldn't be him, he was dead!) the young dwarf couldn't stop that strange feeling in his stomach, something far too similar to horror, even if he would never admit it. To counteract it, he gripped his sword even tighter and wondered whether Legolad had already thought of a plan.

"Now, what do we have here? A few orcs, but I can't say it's an honor!", the elf retorted, and there was something in his voice that held all the hatred he felt and so much defiance that Kili couldn't help but feel a little bit braver.

The orc looked puzzled for a second, and then started to laugh. That sound didn't hold any joy in it and Kili knew that a memory of it accompanied by the knowledge that he was in a bad situation - probably the worst he had ever been in - would always stay in his mind.

"That man wants to mock us! Even if he's clearly outnumbered, he tries to show some bravery, probably to impress his little friend! But boys, I like this bravery, this strength of spirit, because it's much more fun to break the strong ones", and with that, he laughed again, and the other orcs soon joined him.

Kili wondered where this would go, but he couldn't think of a pleasant way to end it. He shot a short glance to Legolas who stood there, seemingly relaxed, but he could tell that he was ready to react as soon as the situation demanded it. The elf noticed that, and he nodded curtly as to reassure the dwarf that he had thought of something.

Truth to be told, the only thing Legolas could think of now was to fight to whatever end would come. No smart idea, no clever plan came to his mind, and he could only think of his sister who was in no better situation and who would probably meet an untimely end here, deep under the mountain. Then he thought of his father, who wouldn't be able to bear the loss of another two members of his family and who would most definitely not survive the grief this time, when there was nobody he needed to be strong for. And that made Legolas feel a sadness he hadn't felt for some time now, since his mother had passed.

The thought of her and how she had suffered and died, renewed the hatred and it gave him strength. Legolas pressed his lips together and tightened the hold on his knives, again looking in Kili's direction. The dwarf noticed it this time, and gave him a nod, as if understanding what the elf wanted to tell him.

"Have courage", Legolas said, low enough that the laughing orcs didn't hear him, but the dwarf did.

And Kili smiled, feeling brave and strong now, eager to engage into the fight, optimistic to win even if that seemed ironic. Legolas on the other hand drew strength from that smile, from that faith and daredevil-attitude, and nearly let out a laugh but instead breathed deep. And then, he leapt forward, and the orc which he beheaded never knew what had happened. The other orcs were likewise surprised by the pained cry of one of them that was run through by Kili's sword.

Legolas stepped back to avoid the blade of an orc, just to kill him with a swift movement of his knife. He quickly found his pace in that deadly dance, where a misstep could mean pain and death, and he seemed to master that dance, moving fast, ducking, slashing and leaping that Kili would have stared at him in awe, hadn't he been occupied with his own enemies. The dwarf was not as agile as the elf, but he was smaller which also made him a smaller target. And for a dwarf, Kili was quite swift in his movements himself, evading blades instead of blocking them most of the time and using his enemy's momentum to let them stumble into his sword more than once. He had learned that tactic from Legolas and found it quite useful.

But even if the two were quite successful in their fighting, giving deadly wounds, but only taking the occassional small hits. After a few minutes, Legolas' sleeve was torn and the destroyed fabric was soaking blood from a gash that stretched over nearly half of his arm, but still, he fought on, probably not noticing it for the adrenaline coursing through his body or plainly ignoring it. Kili had received a blow to the face and now blood was running freely from his hurt nose as well as his split lip which annoyed him more at the moment than it hurt, thanks to the adrenaline again.

Unfortunately, the scent of blood made the orcs even more eager to get to their prey. They forgot all hesitance, the scent made them nearly mad with bloodlust, awakening their animalistic hunger so that they just rushed and pressed forward.

When Legolas noticed that, he knew that they were as good as doomed. He was only thankful that the orcs hadn't discovered that he was an elf for that would have made them even more eager to get to him, kill him and do things to his body that he didn't want to think of. Legolas knew they wouldn't stand a chance now and he retreated, walking backwards and grabbing one of the torches which stood in line on the pathway to the platform where the Goblin king was still mocking his captives – or that was what Legolas thought he did because he hadn't paid attention to them since the fighting had started. Sheathing his knives, he pulled Kili back and then waved the torch in front of them to drive the orcs away.

Even if those orcs were able to walk in the sunlight – unlike the goblins that feared it more than anything – didn't mean that the liked it or light in general and now, out of a natural reflex, they shied away.

Legolas knew it wouldn't hold them off for long, so he pushed Kili in the direction of the platform and ran after him, followed by the orc's roaring. He didn't know what good it would do them, but maybe they could go back to the dwarf's original plan of killing the goblins that guarded the weapons, then arm the other unfortunate captives and would probably even stand a better chance than they did before. Although Legolas knew that this plan required an unrealistic amount of luck, an unrealistic plan was better than nothing.

When he told the dwarf about his plan in one short sentence, while they ran over to the platform and Legolas stopped to drive the orcs away again with his torch, only partially succeeding, Kili just snorted and mumbled:

"I knew it was a good plan right from the beginning!"

And after a few more paces they had reached the platform where the Goblin king just got aware of them when they threw themselves at the 3 goblins guarding the weapons – or at least Kili threw himself at them. Legolas killed a few of them nearby with some well-aimed arrows, and so far nobody fought back. Instead, they were all staring at them, but to Legolas' satisfaction, his sister pulled herself together first and cocked her head to the side with a slight smirk – she had recognized him and he would probably never hear the end of this new act of stupidity.

Kili had killed the three guards without much effort and grabbed a sword. Seeing that it was Fili's, he tossed it at his brother who just caught it out of reflex but still stared at them in surprise.

Then, the orcs reached the platform and the two companions ran out of luck. The creatures, still wanting to get to the source of the blood they were smelling, were in each other's way and struggled with each other to get to their prey first, but then, they were upon them.

Although, Kili noticed, there were only a few of them, maybe ten orcs, not more, and he noticed that this pale orc wasn't among them. His relief was short lived and it took him all of his skill to keep the others away from him. To his regret, he noticed that Fili still hadn't joined them but was still staring. It seemed to Kili that it had been at least minutes ago when he had tossed him one of his swords, but in reality, it had been merely a few seconds.

Then, after Legolas had beheaded one orc and slid the throat of another while Kili had managed to impale one and push two of them over the edge of the platform, the Goblin king roused himself from his stupor and shouted:  
"Now, what do we have here? Get away from my new guests!", the last sentence was meant for the remaining five orcs which weren't sure what to do and then decided to play it safe and retreat, even if the still strong smell of blood told them otherwise.

Kili panted and held his sword in front of him, now noticing that his uncle Thorin was a little bit too close to the big goblin, staring at him in a surprised yet hostile manner. At least he hadn't recognized him – Kili had to thank Legolas for the idea with the hood – because the dwarven king didn't look like he wanted to strangle him right away.

Legolas shot a glance to his sister who still smirked and then faced the goblin, exchanging his knives with his bow, but holding it as well as an arrow in his hands.

"Excuse me?", he said, his voice as cold as ice.

"Is that a way to treat your most gracious host, human?", the Goblin king responded and the goblins around joined in his laughter, making an awful lot of noise so that Kili wanted to cover his ears.

Someone snorted, and he was sure it had been Legolas' sister.

"Now, that's a rare sight, a dwarf and a human traveling together. What's behind this, one must think, and it's surely nothing good", the goblin continued, not waiting for an answer.

"That's none of your business", Legolas replied icily, and Kili was thankful for that. He already knew that all the dwarves were watching him closely for anything that might give away, wondering who he could be, and he was sure they would recognize him immediately if he spoke.

"My, my, humans know nothing of politeness", the Goblin king roared again with laughter.

Legolas murmured something that suspiciously sounded like "At least that's true", but Kili wasn't sure because the noise the goblins were making was almost deafening.

"But I've already told my other guests here that if they don't tell me willingly, I shall make them tell me what business they have in my kingdom. The same goes for you", the goblin said, eying his new captives closely. He wouldn't mind using his machines to make them talk, not at all.

"Nothing important, we were merely passing through, seeking shelter because of the storm out there. But what they are doing here is quite obvious, if you ask me...", Legolas trailed off, his mouth twitching even the slightest when he saw something very alike to hatred flaming in Thorin's eyes. He had never liked that particular dwarf and he enjoyed teasing him a bit. Then, his eye caught movement in the shadows and he knew that their rescue was not too far away if he talked a little while longer, drawing all attention on himself.

Kili inhaled sharply, aiming to kick the elves shin and succeeding. What in Mahal's name was he doing?

The Goblin king stared at Legolas, and before the creature could say more, he continued:

"But I wouldn't expect too much of them, if I were you. I mean, the most of them are nothing more than troll food", he said, a smirk creeping up on his lips.

His sister snorted and then started to giggle and Kili stared at him before remembering the story that Legolas had told him from what the trees – mind you, the trees! - had told him about the dwarves' adventures in the Trollshaws, and he bit his lip to not laugh at the expression on Thorin's face who looked like he would either explode or strangle the elf.

Legolas' sister now laughed openly, tears streaming down her face and the Goblin king didn't know whether he should actually laugh or not.

And then suddenly, before anyone could move or do anything, a white light filled the cave and a shock wave hit them all.

Kili didn't know how he'd met the ground, but when he came to, he was lying on the rocky floor and a particularly pointy rock seemed to be digging into his back – he was sure that there was going to be a big bruise. His ears were ringing and dots in various colors were clouding his vision. After another few seconds, it came back to him what had happened – and instantly he leapt to his feet. The others around him, dwarves, orcs and goblins alike, were still dazedly lying around, some of them were groaning. Only Legolas was on his feet as well, blinking rapidly as to clear his vision.

Then, a thundering voice filled the whole cave:

"Take up arms! Fight!"

* * *

Okay, so again, let me know what you think! Everything is appreciated, as always :)

I know, it wasn't that funny this time, there wasn't that much talking as in the previous chapters, but I needed to put in some action - and more is to follow, but the dialogues should increase again... I love to write them! :)

So, for now, good night everyone, but make sure to leave a nice review (after all, I had sooooo much trouble with writing that chapter just for YOU - well, not entirely true, since I do for myself as much as for you, but you as a potential reviewer are making it worth! - it wouldn't hurt you to leave a little comment, right?! :) )


	9. The light at the end of the tunnel

Hello everyone,

finally I've finished the next chapter! It's quite long, I know, and it's not that much action in it... and of course I tried to put in a few jokes... AND I hope you'll like it :)

A big Thank You to all my awesome reviewers, followers and to all people, who like this story and have read it until now. Thanks to your support, I felt encouraged enough to write this chapter, so consider it as a "gift" to you (probably an early easter-egg, because I'm not going to have the time to write another until Easter). :)

Now, enjoy the next chapter!

* * *

The light at the end of the tunnel

Legolas immediately recognized Mithrandir's voice and shot a look in the direction of the old wizard who was holding his staff and a sword. Around him, goblins and dwarves alike were still dazedly lying on the ground, but he saw his sister getting to her feet, shaking her head as if to clear a haze away, and Kili was already standing, looking a bit worse for wear with blood that kept running from his nose and was smeared all over the lower half of his face that could be seen now that his hood was slightly out of place. Legolas checked the position of his own – there was no need for Thorin to recognize him just now, and Kili absentmindedly followed his example.

And then, when the first goblins recovered from the lightning and all dwarves were on their feet, the fighting began as well as the running. Following Mithrandir's lead, they all ran to the pathway that connected the platform with the other paths, and with that, the dwarves' fury was awakened. They attacked their former captors, not showing any mery, while they were running after the wizard who surely knew the way out. The pained screeches of goblins filled the underground world, accompanied by dwarven battle cries.

Kili wanted to join his friends, his kin, not thinking twice about it now that he felt so much relief because their rescue was near. But Legolas held him back with one hand while separating a goblin's head from the rest of its body with the knife in the other.

"Hey! What are you doing?", the young dwarf gasped, patting away the elf's hand and would have marveled at how fast the second knife appeared in that hand and quickly set to work, hadn't he been so annoyed with the elf. He had to wait for an answer a little longer when he himself used his bow to end a goblin's life that had aimed its own arrow at the back of Kili's brother.

"Don't you think your happy family reunion should wait until we are out of here?", Legolas shot back, mouth set grimly as he got rid of another two goblins when he slashed at them so that they tumbled over the platform's edge.

"Speaking about waiting, wouldn't it be clever for his highness to escape that hole here as well, as long as there's still time?", a sharp voice cut in, before Kili could say anything. Turning his head, he saw Legolas' sister that stood there, a mighty sword in both hands – the sword looked a bit too heavy for her although Kili wouldn't dare to tell her.

"Speaking about escaping, wouldn't it be clever for her highness to put on her hood so that she won't escape this hole just to fall into the hands of a dwarven king who has sworn revenge on her father?", Legolas mimicked, smirking a bit.

Kili said nothing and had nearly been injured by a goblin's blade, but thanks to his fast reflexes the beast ended up with an arrow in its eye, shot at close range and therefore running through the skull so that the tip could be seen at the other side. The young dwarf had stared at the she-elf, marveling at her beauty that was as breath-taking as Arwen's had been, but in a different way. Arwen had been gentle, but this one seemed to be a fighter with her eyes sparkling and showing emotion as much as her brother's did. Then, looking from one elf to the other, Kili noticed how much they looked alike, nearly as much as the twins in Rivendell.

The she-elf rolled her eyes, but put on her hood nevertheless.

"Are you done with your happy family reunion so that we can go on?", Kili heard himself say, his mouth working when his mind was still occupied with the task of comprehending how alike the elves were.

Legolas snorted and motioned for his sister to lead the way.

"Just that you know, we're going to have a long talk, and Adar's going to give you a piece of his mind when you return home, too", she said with finality in her voice and then walked on with long strides, killing the occasional goblin on her way.

Legolas winced – he had tried to keep that thought from his mind, but now it came back to him. He was sure that he was going to get the lectures of his life, and he even couldn't deny that he deserved them.

Then, he pushed Kili on the pathway and followed the dwarf, watching his back. Even if he didn't admit it, he felt responsible for the young one now and had grown quite fond of him. Killing another goblin with a swift strike, he watched Kili who was fighting his way through the remaining goblins without slowing down, and there was so much hope and defiance and valor in him, combined with the spirit of youth, and Legolas realized, all the while killing enemy after enemy without thinking about it twice, that those were things he had lost and now had started to gain back, with the help of a dwarf. And with that, a smile appeared on his face and he doubled his efforts to fight his opponents as well as the ones who threatened Kili from the back. Now, that they had a chance, Legolas would do everything to come out of this alive.

* * *

After his arms had grown so heavy from fighting that it nearly became an impossible task to even lift his sword and his legs felt like there were big weights attached to them, his breath was coming in short gasps and his heart was beating so fast and powerful that it almost hurt, Kili saw the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel.

The way to that end had been rather difficult – it had all happened in a haze to him for he had been reacting blindly, slashing at everything that looked like an enemy and had seemed like a threat to him or his allies. Sadly, he hadn't gotten the chance to use his bow – Kili had come to love this weapon more and more because it had proved very useful on this journey. Legolas' trust in his own one had even encouraged him, and everyone who had seen the elf use his bow would never doubt that it could be deadlier than every sword if used in the right way.

While Legolas' sister had been a few paces ahead and had used a her sword with a strength that would have made many men proud, the elf himself followed after Kili and had had his own share of goblins to deal with. Even if it had become quite dangerous from time to time, with goblins closing in from every direction and threatening them with nearly every possible weapon – maces, hatchets, knifes, strange-looking swords, stones and even their one claws and teeth – Kili still had the impression that Legolas actually enjoyed their latest adventure, especially because he knew that his sister was as safe as possible at that moment and because of a chance to escape from these underground paths. Kili himself couldn't put his belief in words as he finally saw daylight and smelt fresh air; even he as a dwarf hated those caves full of nightmares.

Eventually stepping out through the entrance, the young dwarf had to shut his eyes against the rays of the sun that shone brightly. It took him some time to get used to so much light after being in the dark for so long, and when they did, he was happy to be greeted by a forest. Actually, it was always a bit worrying when a dwarf enjoyed the sight of plants and trees more than being underground, but in that moment, Kili simply didn't care.

Behind him, Legolas sighed in relief as well and the dwarf couldn't help the smile that spread now on his face as he blinked in the sunlight. He realized that the sun was already setting, so it had to be afternoon then. They had been underground for nearly a day, and it seemed a lot shorter to him, but with the knowledge of the amount of time that had passed came the exhaustion. Again, he felt his heavy arms and aching legs and the lack of drink and food. He swallowed hard, and then sheathed his sword, unsure, what to do next and whether to voice his discomfort or not.

"And what do we do now?", someone said not far from him and Kili looked to his right, for the first time noticing Legolas' sister again.

Her brother looked at the dwarf, and he could imagine him raising an eyebrow.

"How am I supposed to know that?", he shot back, a bit irritated.

"Well, it's your family out there, and it's your journey we're on to win back your-", and that was where Legolas was interrupted.

"Wait, wait, wait, Mister. What kind of journey are you talking about?", she said and there was an edge to her voice that wasn't comforting at all.

"I'm quite sure that's none of your business", he said in the same tone, his eyebrow still raised.

"But it's yours? That's not fair!"

"Oh, is it?"

"Indeed. It's almost extra-ordinarily unfair because I'm only here because of you!"

"Because of me?", and Kili imagined the eyebrow wandering even higher.

"Of course! What do you think I would do after you left in the middle of the night, without another word to anyone? Do you think I would have just stayed at home, not caring what happened to my only brother? Do you think I would have just let you go, especially now when the shadow over our home seems to grow every day and our people are in danger? When there's an unknown evil in the ruins of Dol Guldur that destroys our home and kills our warriors?", at the end of her little speech, her voice had reached the volume of a shout and her cheeks had gone red, betraying how upset she was, and Kili could only stare at her, marveling about that person that could be so terrifying and yet so beautiful at the same time and making a mental note to never be at the receiving end of her rage because now he understood what Legolas had meant when he said that there were people scarier than his uncle when outraged.

The elf himself had grown pale at the words of his sister, or at least the part of his face that Kili could see, had, for he still wore his hood while his sister had gotten rid of it. And another surprising and also worrying thing was that he didn't say anything, his lips again tightly pressed together.

To be honest, Kili felt sorry for the elf, because he knew that Legolas wouldn't have gone so far from his people and his home if he had known that they needed him, or would he? The young dwarf hadn't gotten the chance to know what really had caused the elf's deep grief and had brought him on this journey so far west where they had met, for grief or despair had surely driven him if he had wanted to sail to that strange land over the sea where elves used to go when they realised that there was nothing that kept them in Middle-Earth anymore(or at least Kili had been told that).

But then, when Kili had chosen to step in in whatever way came to his mind to help his friend, something happened that neither of them had anticipated. Being caught up in their argument, even the elves with their sharp ears hadn't noticed who was approaching them and that was why they were caught unaware by the company of dwarves storming on the clearing they were in.

They must have found another way out, was the first thing Kili thought and then he realised that they were indeed in the middle of a forest, rather far away from the mountain slope, which also explained why it had taken them so long to end up here while the other company had found its way out higher up the slope.

In a few seconds, they were surrounded by 12 rather exhausted yet armed and therefore still dangerous dwarves who were pointing various weapons at them.

Kili found himself face to face with a rather grumpy Dwalin who was holding his hammer ready and far too close for the younger dwarf's liking so that he wished nothing more than to hide somewhere or to at least pull his hood down in front of his face so that it covered it entirely. In the corner of his eye, he could see that Legolas had drawn his bow, the arrow poiting exactly at Thorin who looked like there was no good fate waiting for the elf. Legolas' sister had her sword still in her hand, but Kili couldn't see her face. What he could see, thought, was Fili who was standing not too far from him, and it made his heart leap with joy to see his brother relatively well and healthy. Even though he looked a bit worse for wear - his hair was truly a mess, and Kili would have a lot of fun to tease him about it if the situation had been different – but apart from a few bruises and a lot of dirt on his face and clothes, he looked fine.

Then, Thorin's voice, as cold as the steel of his sword, and also as sharp, interrupted his thoughts and brought him back to the problem at hand: facing and revealing himself to his kin – a task that he was not up to, not at the least:

"Finally we've found you, elf!"

Kili had to suppress a shudder. He had often tried to avoid the thoughts of this reunion, but he had always known that he never wanted to do it when his uncle was angry and it all got worse with every second that was passing.

"My congratulations, Thorin, your skill in tracking is rather impressing. Should you ever seek a good job, I'm sure my king can employ you."

That was just great, Legolas and his teasing were not helping at all, and Kili noticed with alarm that Thorin was nearly trembling with rage now, his eyes shooting daggers.

"Should this elf-spawn ever come near him, I'll make sure that he'll meet the same end as you will if you ever dare to speak to him in that way", it was not Thorin that answered, but Fili, his heir, looking at the elf with so much hate that it made the blood in Kili's veins freeze – he had never seen his brother like that and it scared him. It also meant that there was another one whose wrath he had to face for running away.

"Excuse me?", Legolas said now sweetly, and yet there was something in his voice that made the hair on Kili's back stand up. Nobody liked it if his king was insulted and threatened, especially if said king was also one's father.

"That is the second time I heard him say that today, that good elven hearing seems to truly be a fairy-tale", Fili said and a few dwarves including Dwalin started to roar with laughter at that.

Legolas, as Kili noticed, made a show of looking around as if looking for something, and then he said to his sister:

"I think I'm imagining things."

"Why's that?"

"I thought I just heard a voice, yet I can't see anything", he told her, and Kili could hear her snort.

"Look a bit more downwards, somewhere near ground-level", she replied and there was laughter in her voice. If the situation had been different, Kili would have felt insulted at that, but right now, he just feared what was to come.

"Oh, there you are! Sorry, I kind of missed you before, but you can't blame me! Your height makes you not exactly easy to see", Legolas said to Fili, faking surprise, and the dwarf's face grew red with rage at that. What was more, Kili could hear Dwalin growl and the air around them seemed to grow thick with tension. The young dwarf clenched his fists to prevent his hands from shaking; he had not drawn a weapon because he would never do that while facing his kin.

"You hear that, and yet you do nothing against it? What makes you endure that?", Thorin cut in, and poor Kili only realised a few seconds later that he had meant him when all eyes were on him.

Suddenly, he felt like a trapped animal. He tried to swallow, but his throat had run dry, and even if had known something good to say, he wouldn't have had the chance to say it for his voice was gone. Terrified and at a loss what to do, he focused on the ground as if he was waiting for it to open and swallow him – that would have at least solved the problem at hand.

"He's mute", Legolas' sister said in an attempt to aid him.

"And deaf", Legolas added for good measure, ruining her efforts.

"And do you want to tell me that's he's also blind?", Thorin growled.

"That would be a lie", Legolas answered in a matter-of-fact-tone that didn't help at all. Kili groaned, betraying himself that he actually had a voice, and instantly finding himself at the center of everyone's focus again, inwardly cursing himself.

"And he's also bleeding", Fili said then, frowning, and motioned with his sword for Kili's face. The younger dwarf noticed that his demolished nose still trickled blood and his split lip had reopened from biting on it.

"Weren't you planning on helping him, then?", someone piped up, Kili suspected it to be Ori – even Ori who would rather spend his time on a library than on the training grounds had been allowed on this quest, something he had been denied, and that thought awakened the old anger and feeling of injustice in him.

"No way, we were actually intending on sucking him dry to still our thirst", Legolas' sister retorted with a hint of sarcasm which still made poor Ori gasp and Legolas snicker.

Before Thorin who now really looked like something bad was to happen that wouldn't end well for any of the two elves, could say anything, Gandalf, the old grey wizard and a funny looking creature, even smaller than most dwarves, appeared.

"Now, young Elvanna, that's surely a rudeness neither of your parents would be proud to hear their daughter say", the old man said and Kili felt at first relieved to see the old man who would surely help to ease some of the tension between the two parties, but then, he also got wary because that old wise wizard was another person who could recognize him. Another thing that made him feel cautious was Fili who was watching him intently now, surely quite near to figuring out that it was his little brother there in front of him, and how that would end, Kili didn't want to think of.

"I wouldn't be so sure of that", Legolas murmured at Gandalf's intervention and his sister, Elvanna, snorted at that before answering:

"Aww, Mithrandir, you're ruining all the fun. We were just getting to know our new friends here!"

"We have no business with this crazy woman there, but we want to how that elf knows about our journey and its purpose!" Thorin said, and there was another unspoken threat in his voice, and Kili was thankful that Fili's attention shifted back to Legolas.

"Maybe that little traitor told him!", someone, most likely Glòin, shouted, and again Kili found all eyes on him again, this time with two additional pairs, one looking extremely curious and the other staring at him with an intensity that it made him again wanting to simply disappear.

"Remember, he can't, he's mute!", Elvanna intervened, a smile in her voice – she loved teasing those dwarves even if it meant playing with the fire.

"And deaf, so how could he know?", Legolas added, smirking again.

"Lying is not polite as well, young friend!", Gandalf shot the elf a warning look, but still didn't reveal his name for that surely would lead to an escalation of the whole situation.

"Maybe he should lift his hood so you all can see his face. Surely you know him and then you can find out whether the elves are lying or not because you probably recognize him", the halfling piped in, and he actually meant well, but Kili felt a knot of panic form in his throat and found it suddenly hard to breathe.

The other dwarves shortly discussed the halfling's idea, and some were actually surprised and happy to see the hobbit, for they hadn't noticed him before. Short sentences like "Glad that we have our burglar back" were heard before they agreed on realizing his plan.

In the meantime, Kili had moved backwards until he bumped into Legolas and his sister who both looked at him.

"Do something! I'm not ready to meet them!", he hissed and looked up to the elf who nodded in understanding.

"You know you can't hide forever", his sister hissed back, not knowing the original situation, but understanding a part of it.

"I'm going to buy you some time, but you'd better figure out a good way to tell them that you're actually you because that's what you need to do", Legolas murmured.

"I know. Thank you, you're a good friend, it was nice to know you", Kili whispered garvely, earning a slight smile from the elf.  
"I trust you to do the right thing", he responded, and then raised his voice:

"So, a burglar? What were you planning, Thorin? Do you really want to steal you treasure back piece by piece with the help of a halfling? If you ask me, you should have thought of that sooner, before you got such a, uhm, fiery pet", Legolas said, provoking for the sake of his friend, knowing he did the right thing.

Thorin growled deep in his throat at that and was ready to kill the elf with a swift strike of his sword, but was held back by Balin who whispered something in his ear.

"Remarkable", the dwarven king in exile said then.

Taken by surprise that his rather offensive insult hadn't worked, Legolas said nothing at that.

"Truly remarkable, that a mere elf sacrifices so much for a dwarf. But it's not going to help you anything, elf, because that's not going to ease any of the guilt of your people and it's not going to make me forget how your king refused to help us in that hour of need", Thorin said, and again, his voice was full of controlled anger.

"I can't blame him for I don't remember any dwarves that helped my people in their hour of need", Legolas retorted icily.

Meanwhile, Kili wracked his mind looking for a smart way to reveal his identity. He had noticed that Fili had again settled on watching him intently, and it made him even more nervous. It also reminded him of the task at hand: What was he going to do? How could he reveal himself in a way that was mostly harmless for himself? He needed to avoid being send back as well, for that was the worst punishment he could think of, and it made fear rise in him, because he could never stand such a fate, but he most likely couldn't stand disobeying his uncle for another time!

"And what hour of need would that be?", Thorin inquired.

"For example, the battle in the Gorgoroth where the last alliance between elves and men fought against Sauron and finally won", Elvanna answered instead of Legolas.

"Well, then I don't see why you make such a fuss about it", Fili said now, his eyes never leaving poor Kili who felt like he wanted to cry out of despair for he couldn't find an easy way out of his situation.

"That victory came with high losses like the former king of Greenwood or the king of the men from Númenor himself", Legolas said in a grave voice. He couldn't remember his grandfather, but he had witnessed a shadow traveling over his father's face whenever they were talking about this battle, and that was enough for him.

"A shame the elves didn't leave their current king there as well, maybe a wiser one would have lent aid to our people when they needed it", someone said, referring to the dragon's attack again.

Kili couldn't help a small gasp at that open insult, and with a sideways-glance at Legolas, he could see that it had hit home. All color had left the part of the elf's face that he could see, and even his lips seemed to have lost color.

"Enough now! What do you think you will accomplish with that foolish argument?", Gandalf intervened again, and his voice had gained some power so that everyone looked now at him, some of them flinching a bit.

But it didn't stop them all, because Legolas' sister was ready to throw herself at the dwarf who had insulted her father and king – Kili suspected that it had been Glóin who in particular hated elves – and was only held back by Legolas.

"Leave me alone! If you can stand this, fine, but I won't let this gnome insult our f-"

"And what are you going to gain from that? Nothing useful!", he shot back, and she stilled her struggles.

Before anyone could say another word, they were again interrupted by the small halfling whose sharp ears had picked up a strange sound:

"What was that?"

"What was what?", Dwalin said, and Kili who had been too caught up in his own frantic thoughts, was reminded of the gruff dwarf's presence.

"Shush", both elves said in unison, listening intently themselves.

"Wolves", Elvanna said then, looking at the now setting sun.

"Indeed. And there's not much daylight left. I suggest we depart from here", Legolas said calmly, but there was some nearly hidden anxiousness in his voice.

"Pah! They just want to avoid us!", Glóin thundered.

"Hush, Master Glóin, they are right. If you value your life, you should run", Gandalf said, and that left the dwarves a bit nervous, for nobody in his right mind ignored a wizard's advice. But they still waited for their leader's command.

"You heard him, run!", Thorin bellowed, and that coursed them into action.

In a few seconds, all dwarves had departed from the clearing, running after the wizard and their king, and left the three companions standing alone there, looking after them. Even if they hated the elves for numerous reasons, they were weakened from their capture and stay in Goblin-town and fighting wolves or what was worse, wargs, was never an easy task. So they left their other enemies there, should the wolves deal with them!

"That was close", Kili breathed, wiping sweat from his forehead, referring to his latest avoidance of the whole 'revealing his true identity to his family'-issue.

"Don't feel relieved, it's not over, not even nearly", Elvanna said.

Kili shuddered for he now could hear a wolf (or warg?) howling in the distance, and with the knowledge that they wouldn't stand a chance against a large and hungry pack of wolves after nightfall, it send a shiver down his spine.

"True. Even if it pains me to say this, we should follow them. We'll have a better chance if we are with them", Legolas said calmly because he knew that was the only reasonable thing to do.

Hesitating, Kili nodded, but instead of being scared of that revelation of his identity to his kin that seemed inevitable now, he felt acceptance and relief – acceptance that he had to deal with that and relief that all the pretending would be over then.

"Well then, devil takes the hindmost!", Elvanna shouted and raced off, laughing like a small child.

Legolas groaned at her change in mood, but pushed Kili in front of him so that he would not loose the young dwarf, and Kili couldn't help but feel relieved at that as well – he knew that his friend had his back now and would have it in the future, whatever his uncle or brother might say and whatever might happen to them because that adventure was truly far from over!

* * *

So... I hope you liked it, and I hope you'll leave a nice review or two to put some pressure on me to start with the next chapter soon. I'm also ooking forward to it and to where the road might lead our heroes. :) There's gonna be orcs in the next chapter, and wargs of course, as you all might have suspected, but I'm sure you won't suspect the way Kili and Legolas are going to deal with them ;).


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